The next morning, Luke welcomed Mara warmly when Herkin delivered her to his door. The normally overbearing officer once more stood back warily, giving Luke a wide berth.

*Ready for today?* she sent to him, as he kissed her and led her inside. Mara smoothed the front of her knee-length shimmersilk dress, its emerald sparkles perfectly matching her brilliant eyes.

*As ready as I'll ever be,* he returned, pulling her to the couch. One way or another, this would be his last day of captivity.

An hour later, Luke approached his front door and began pounding on it.

"Guards!" he shouted.

The business end of a stormtrooper's blaster rifle greeted him as the door swished open.

"Miss Jade has collapsed inside. You need to take her to the infirmary," Luke spit out, a worried expression plastered on his face. An old trick, admittedly, but perhaps these two hadn't heard it in awhile.

Rifles held out carefully, the two white-clad troopers entered the suite.

"Back away from the door," one of them ordered.

Luke stepped back obligingly, wincing slightly at the sound of two thuds as Mara carried out her contribution to the subduing of the guards. He immediately swung back toward the hallway, holding out one hand to easily Force-shove the approaching Royal Guards into the wall. Waving toward the ceiling, he made short work of the hallway's holocameras.

As Mara tossed him one of the appropriated rifles, Luke checked the setting, then swiftly stunned all four guards. He hurried into the turbolift, disabling that holocam as well just before Mara joined him. Before the lift doors even shut, she was pulling herself through the escape hatch in the ceiling. Luke triggered the control button for a non-stop descent to the first floor, then sprang through the hatchway right behind her, the bulky rifle slung across his back. By the time he caught hold of the maintenance ladder in the darkened shaft, the lift had carried him several floors below where Mara also clung to it.

"Skywalker?"

"I'm right behind you," he returned, his voice echoing eerily up the shaft. Had he noted a hint of anxiety in her tone? "Go! It won't take them long to discover the lift's empty and send it right back up!"

Mara scrambled up the ladder, hurrying toward the crawlspace she had staked out the day before. The lift had dropped two floors even before she had been able to leap off its top. She could barely make out the sound of Luke's boots on the rungs below her.

"Hurry!" Luke's shout reverberated upward. "I hear it coming!"

Mara had just reached her destination and swiftly pulled herself in. Turning around awkwardly in the cramped horizontal shaft, she poked her head back out the opening. She too could now hear the whooshing of the rapidly moving turbolift drawing dangerously close.

"Jump!" she practically screamed. She didn't want to think about the consequences if the lift slammed into him while he was still in the shaft.

Luke didn't need to be told twice. Focusing both on Mara's voice and her presence, he Force-leapt up the last twenty meters, grabbing desperately onto the ladder just next to the maintenance crawlspace. Mara reached out and yanked him inside a split second before the lift car whooshed past. They heard it come to a stop moments later, no doubt depositing troopers onto Luke's floor.

"Thanks," Luke said, panting. "I think I felt it scrape the bottom of my boots. And I thought sure this rifle would get caught on something."

Mara was already turning herself around, scrambling on her hands and knees along the pitch-black passageway. "Thank me later. We need to get as far away from here as possible."

They clamored hurriedly down the tunnel for another hundred meters or so. Mara could feel Luke behind her, though he barely made a sound. Part of her was glad it was so dark he didn't have any view of her derriere. The other part felt so comfortable with him, it wouldn't have mattered. She pushed both parts deep into the recesses of her mind.

Luke nearly plowed into Mara's feet when she stopped suddenly. He could hear her feeling along the wall, but the darkness prevented him from seeing even his own hands in front of him.

"It should be right here," she whispered, continuing to search for the hidden release she knew was there.

"Feel for it through the Force," Luke advised, ignoring her huff of annoyance. Just then, a panel in the wall slid aside, and a whiff of only slightly fresher air assaulted their senses. Brushing aside cobwebs as they climbed through the opening, Luke was relieved that this new passageway, though narrow and still dark, was high enough that they could stand upright. As he was still stretching his muscles, Mara reached past him to trigger the panel back closed.

"Come on," she bit out. "We've still got a long way to go."

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Emperor Palpatine had been alone in his dining chamber, finishing an early lunch, when a clearly petrified officer dared to interrupt.

"Your ... Your Excellency," the man stammered, bowing deeply.

"What is it?" Palpatine's caustic voice returned.

"The security holocams in the prisoner's rooms have all gone out," the lieutenant sputtered, certain his life was over just for reporting such unwelcome news. "And the guards are not responding."

"Prisoner?" the Emperor repeated, though he had no doubt which prisoner the officer was referring to.

"The ... the Jedi," the man answered, bowing his head in acceptance of his fate.

"Send Lord Vader in here," Palpatine ordered, "and Captain Herkin. Detail two squadrons of stormtroopers to that floor immediately."

"Troopers have already been dispatched, Your Highness." The officer bowed once more and backed out of the room, relieved to be able to deliver at least one satisfactory report.

Darth Vader swept into the dining chamber moments later, followed by Captain Herkin. "Skywalker is attempting to escape," the Emperor grated out accusingly. "I can no longer feel his presence in the palace."

"He cannot have gotten far," Vader responded, also noting the absence of Luke's Force presence. "He must be cloaking himself."

"He was still there when I escorted Miss Jade to his rooms this morning," Captain Herkin put in hesitantly. "I was just about to go retrieve her."

"Replay the security recordings from all morning," Vader ordered, and Herkin moved swiftly to the nearby holo-projection table to comply. An image of Luke came into focus, dressed in his own black clothes and sitting cross-legged on the floor near a window, apparently meditating. He looked up just before his door opened, admitting Herkin and Mara Jade. Herkin had given the Jedi a cautious look as Luke pulled her into an embrace, then shut the door, locking it securely.

They watched as Luke and Mara made their way across the room, and Luke pulled her down onto his couch. Herkin increased the volume on the unit to catch what they were saying.

"I've been waiting all morning for you," Luke murmured, kissing her hungrily.

"And now I'm here," Mara replied in a sultry voice. "So what do you have planned?"

"You know what I want," Luke said huskily, running his hands up and down her formfitting shimmersilk dress. "Let’s do it in the tub again."

Mara kissed him on the nose playfully. "You know we're supposed to stay out here," she countered.

"But I like it in the water," he whined. "I don't think His Excellency will mind, since I'll be joining him in ruling the Empire today. Call it one last fling before our union becomes permanent."

Jade giggled lightly, then got up, pulling him up with her. "All right. I guess we'll have to make sure whatever suite we share in the future has a big tub, too, desert boy."

Palpatine, Vader, and Herkin watched as the pair kissed and laughed their way into the refresher, tugging at each other's clothes impatiently. Herkin fast-forwarded the recording ahead about an hour, until Luke was seen exiting the refresher alone. A determined look filled his face as he looked up directly into the lens of the hidden holocamera. He raised one hand, and the picture blinked out.

Herkin switched the view to the other holocams in the room, but they too swiftly went dark. He triggered the projection to show the scene from the hallway outside the suite's door. They could hear Luke's plea for help, and saw the stormtroopers open the door and enter.

"Fools," Vader bit out, just as Luke reappeared in the doorway. Herkin gasped astonishingly as the Jedi stuck out one hand and the Royal Guards were hurled against the far wall before they could even lower their Force pikes. Luke then glanced toward the hallway's holocams, and they too winked out of existence.

"I didn't see Jade anywhere," Herkin spoke up boldly. "Do you think he disposed of her in the refresher?"

"Or she's joined him," Vader suggested. He turned to the Captain. "Have every square centimeter of that suite searched, especially that accursed refresher. Have the entire palace put on alert. They must not be allowed to escape."

Herkin bowed and hurried from the room. The Jedi's security had been his responsibility. His future did not look bright.

"She betrayed me," Palpatine growled bitterly. "She's helping him. He could not be cloaking himself this effectively on his own."

"And she knows every hidden passageway in the Palace," Vader added. Now was not the time to voice the premonitions he'd had all week that allowing the young pair so much unmonitored time in the refresher was not a wise move. Luke had a talent for persuasion, and Jade had exhibited traces of Light side tendencies on a few rare occasions.

"Find them," the Emperor commanded his dark lord. "I want her head, along with that miserable offspring of yours."

"They will not escape," Vader intoned, bowing his head slightly before striding out of the room, his cape billowing behind him.

* * * * * * * * *

Mara set off at a rapid pace through the musty pitch-black passageway. She rechecked Luke's Force-shield, and could feel him doing the same for her. Both were strong and intact, despite even those tense moments escaping the turbolift shaft.

"I stashed a small pack about twenty floors down," Mara whispered, stopping abruptly. Luke promptly ran smack into her, eliciting a quiet, but irritated, "Hey!"

"Sorry," he sent back in contrition, his breath warm against her cheek.

"I thought you could sense me," she complained in a low voice.

"Not when you stop that fast," he murmured back.

Mara reached out unerringly in the darkness and grasped Luke's hand. "I've got a couple glow rods in my pack, but I don't think we can risk igniting them in here," she said, resuming her brisk pace, and nearly dragging him along.

"That's all right." Luke gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "I'll be fine." Though he couldn't see her, he could tell she was probably rolling her eyes just from the change in her sense.

They backtracked numerous times to avoid trooper patrols that were filtering into the passageways. After a myriad of twists, turns, ramps, and stairwells, Mara announced they'd reached the spot where she had secreted away a small survival pack.

"How can you be sure?" Luke whispered. He should have known better than to question her.

"I've been counting floors since we left yours." She began running one hand against panels in the wall. "Haven't you?"

"Twenty-seven floors down, one half kilometer east."

Mara paused, her hair brushing against his shoulder as she swiveled her head in his direction. "Uh,... that's right." She carefully hid how impressed she was.

"You may as well leave it on kill," she muttered. "Any guards we encounter won't be allowed to live to reveal the passageways' secrets. In fact, if we manage to escape, they'll all be put to death anyway."

In the dim shadows of the glow rod, Mara saw the pained expression that filled Luke's face, and sensed his rueful distress. This was no time to start feeling sorry for stormtroopers. "I imagine the group you stunned outside your door are already dead," she said, without any hint of remorse.

"Well, they won't die by my hand," he declared, firmly clicking the small control to 'stun.' "I already have enough deaths on my conscience."

Mara gave an exasperated sigh, and began strapping a small holdout blaster to her left forearm.

"That's ... wicked looking," Luke commented, eyeing the tiny weapon.

"It's my favorite. I didn't want to leave it behind," she explained indifferently. Luke wisely pretended not to notice when she casually changed the setting on her blaster to stun also.

Mara switched off the glow rod and slung the pack over her shoulders. They could hear the stomping of stormtrooper boots echoing in the distance. Mara took Luke's hand once more, and leaving the cumbersome stormtrooper rifles behind, they resumed their frantic pace.

*I wasn't able to retrieve your lightsaber,* she sent, almost apologetically. *Palpatine keeps it next to his throne.*

*That's okay,* Luke returned, still amazed at how they could switch so smoothly between verbal and silent communication. *I seem to have a penchant for losing them. I can build another someday.*

*I have one myself,* Mara continued, not missing a step in her hurried flight through the darkness. *But I was afraid Palpatine might notice it missing from my room. Bringing the blasters was risky enough.*

*Lightsabers wouldn't exactly be the perfect choice for traveling incognito under the city,* Luke rationalized.

*No, guess not,* Mara concurred.

After a moment, Luke continued, *So, you're skilled with a saber, then?*

*Enough to get by.* Mara had been trained in the art of lightsaber dueling, but she still felt she had a lot to learn.

A secret doorway suddenly slid open ten meters ahead of them, and a pair of crimson Royal Guards were revealed in the shaft of light that swept in with them.

Mara skidded to a halt, with Luke careful not to bump into her this time. Two stun shots pumped out from her weapon, and the guards crumpled in a heap. She was glad Skywalker kept his comments to himself. She had no desire to hear his sanctimonious words of approval. Bad enough she felt like she was going soft, listening to all of his pacifist preaching.

"Let's go." Mara began running once more, pulling Luke behind her. *There's a drop shaft up ahead.*

They soon reached the ancient shaft Mara had remembered. This time, she chanced igniting a glow rod just long enough to locate the spring release for the access panel. The shaft was similar to the ones turbolifts traveled through, only a much tighter squeeze. It was barely a meter square, with a ladder bolted to the wall opposite the access door. Luke poked his head in, peering down into the bottomless well.

"Ladies first," he whispered.

"How chivalrous," Mara returned with a snort.

"Okay, I'll go first. But I don't want to hear any grumbling about my looking up your dress."

"It's pitch black. You're not going to see anything."

"I have a vivid imagination."

Imagination nothing, Mara thought. She'd given him ample opportunities to view her undergarments.

Mara swatted him out of the way, then perched on the lip of the doorway. Once again, she regretted not having on more practical clothing.

Luke held the glow rod out, illuminating the ladder as Mara launched herself across the expanse, grabbing the rungs with practiced ease. She snatched the light as Luke tossed it across, then climbed down a couple meters right before Luke landed in the spot she'd just vacated. He paused long enough to replace the access door with the Force, then followed her downward.

"Don't you dare step on my hands, or head," Mara's voice drifted up to him in the reinstated blackness.

"Yes, ma'am," he sent back obediently.

Hand over hand, they descended quickly, constantly on alert for any sudden appearance of guards. They'd been descending about fifteen minutes when Luke first sensed, then heard, the faint scraping as a panel slid open a couple floors above them.

*Don't move,* he sent quickly to Mara. A powerful spotlight shone upward, then downward, sweeping back and forth.

Do, or do not, Luke told himself as he shut his eyes and concentrated. Moments later, the light withdrew, and Luke felt the troopers move off.

*I can't believe they missed us.* Mara released the breath she'd been holding.

*I projected an illusion of an empty ladder,* Luke returned.

*I'm impressed.*

*Uhh, ... well, ... thanks. Let's go.*

Skywalker certainly didn't fit with what had been drilled into her concerning Jedi, Mara thought. He could never be accused of being arrogant or flashy.

Nearly a half hour later, they reached rock bottom, literally.

"We're ten levels below what's considered the ground floor," Mara informed Luke quietly. "This is where we'll have to go through the sewers for several blocks."

"Oh, goodie," Luke said sarcastically. "I so enjoy a nice jog through the sewers. One of my favorite pastimes."

"At least you're wearing high boots," Mara groused right back. She wasn't looking forward to sloshing through ankle-deep muck in her dress slippers.

"Wouldn't you just love that?"

Wouldn't mind, Luke thought, smiling to himself in the darkness.

Mara bent and pulled off her shoes. She tugged open a metal hatch, then with a disgusted grunt, stepped down into the slimy goop with her bare feet, followed closely by Luke.

"Uhm ...," Luke hesitated. "I'm going to ask the obvious question here. Why didn't you bring boots along?" He could hear her annoyed sigh above the sloshing of their steps.

"Because ...," she drawled, "I had to strap this bag around my thigh to hide it, as it was. There are guards all along the corridors between my room and the nearest entrance to the passageways. It was bulky enough with the blasters, glow rods, and a few ration bars. I couldn't even fit in a cape to cover this dress."

"Why didn't you just wear boots when you came this morning?" Luke persisted.

"Knee-high boots aren't exactly normal attire for a seductress."

"I wouldn't know – you're my first." Luke grabbed Mara's arm as she started to slip in an attempt to jab him in the ribs. "Careful!"

"Stang, this is cold," Mara groused as she pulled out of his grasp.

"If you change your mind, my offer to carry you still stands."

"You'd probably slip and dunk us both."

"Nah, I've got experience navigating through garbage."

"And you never fell in?" Mara snorted derisively, though she was curious to hear his answer.

"Got pulled under once, by a dianoga. Not something I care to repeat. Lando fell in at Xizor's. Chewie slipped there, but that was when we got out and his feet were wet."

Mara stopped suddenly, sliding in the process and latching on to Luke's forearm. Luke had related to her numerous adventures of his Rebel friends over the past several days, but she didn't recall anything concerning the Falleen crimelord.

"Steady!" he cautioned.

"Xizor? Prince Xizor? Of Black Sun?" Mara whispered incredulously.

"Yes." Luke resumed their sluggish trek, careful not to reveal his delight that Mara absentmindedly still clung to his arm. "We entered his castle via the sewers."

"But Xizor's dead, and his castle is destroyed."

Luke laughed lightly. "It is now."

"You ... took down his castle?!"

"Not by myself! That was Lando's contribution. It wasn't actually part of the plan, considering we barely made it out ourselves." Luke continued his tale, as Mara seemed to be listening intently. Perhaps she had decided, as he had, that keeping up a running, though quiet, conversation was marginally effective in keeping their minds off the foul-smelling sludge. "And then, just as I was leaving, Guri decided she wanted to find out how it felt to battle a Jedi."

Mara pulled up once again. "You fought his HRD?"

"We'll never get out of here if you keep stopping," Luke joked, then continued. "She didn't give me much choice."

"I saw it in action once," Mara replied. "It was lethal. You actually defeated it? Everyone assumed it was destroyed in the explosion, or blown up with Xizor in his ship."

"I didn't kill 'her'," Luke corrected. "She couldn't help how she was programmed. She didn't deserve to die, and I'm pretty sure she escaped the explosion."

"Skywalker, it's a droid!"

"Droids have personalities and feelings, in their own way. Wait till you meet Artoo and Threepio. You'll see what I mean."

"Listen here, Skywalker, you're not taking me home to meet the family ... Hey! Something alive just brushed against my leg." Mara involuntarily jumped a little closer to her 'escort.'

"That's it," Luke declared in exasperation. Without hesitation, he scooped her up out of the water. Which didn't suit Mara one little bit.

"Put ... me ... down ... right ... now!"

"Aagghh!" Mara pounded on him, but he held her in a death grip. Thankfully they soon reached the hatchway that Mara had previously determined opened onto a dry tunnel leading directly to Coruscant's underground sections.

Opening the hatch, Luke set his fuming passenger onto the dirty, but dry, surface beyond. He half expected her to slam the hatch shut in his face, but instead she turned aside and calmly pulled out a glow rod. Carefully picking off the worst of the muck, she then slipped her shoes back onto her still filthy feet.

When Mara spun back around to face Luke, though, he surmised that her face was as red as her hair. She poked the narrow glow rod against his chest, highlighting her emphasis on each word she spoke. "Don't ... you ... EVER ... do that again. Do I make myself clear?"

"Perfectly." Burning blue eyes met glacial green ones. "But I'll do whatever is necessary to keep us both safe," Luke returned with a growl. "Do I make ... MYSELF ... clear?"

"Listen, Jedi," she spat, infuriated. "I'm not some princess in distress that needs to be rescued by the likes of you."

"The princesses I know would have more sense than to walk barefoot through raw sewage," he shot back hotly. "How many diseases were you trying to catch?"

Mara whirled away, too furious to speak. He was right, damn him. He was right, and she knew it. It was a stupid thing to do. But she would never, ever, give him the satisfaction of admitting it out loud.

 __________________________________________________________________________________

As Mara stalked down the passageway, Luke trailing silently behind, she realized that she couldn't remember ever fighting with someone like this. Yes, she had a short temper, but everyone she associated with knew it. Those lower than her in Palpatine's hierarchy gave her a wide berth. With those higher, real or imagined, she couldn't risk her image as a mere courtesan. Those outside the Imperial network – well, they didn't live long enough to regret their mistake.

It was almost a refreshing change, she thought with a start, to be able to express herself freely. It didn't matter to her what Skywalker thought of her. Did it? She shunted that contemplation away quickly. At least now she knew he was capable of raising his voice. Even during that episode with Herkin, when she could feel the anger inside him, he had kept his voice low and threatening.

Luke was having musings of his own, as he followed the volatile redhead along the uneven surface. She was keeping the glow rod on low power, pointed down to illuminate her path. Probably doesn't want to risk twisting an ankle and having me pick her up again, Luke thought.

Confounded woman! He was trying to be sensible, and she practically throttled him. He hadn't meant to yell back at her. And maybe screaming at each other hadn't been too smart, given their circumstances. In fact, it was downright stupid. How could he let her rile him like that? It reminded him of one of the many spats he'd witnessed between Han and Leia. Up until they finally admitted they were in love, that is. Suddenly, the comparison made Luke feel strangely uncomfortable.

He watched the silhouette of Mara's slim figure stalking on ahead of him. She was too proud to knock at the wall that had suddenly sprung up between them. That left it up to him.

*Mara?*

No answer.

*Mara?* he repeated.

Her step didn't falter in the least, but a strained reply filtered back.

*What do you want?*

At least she was talking to him.

*I want to apologize. I'm sorry for what I said, and how I said it.*

He doesn't have anything to apologize for, Mara thought. It was she, who'd always been so meticulous in her planning, that had ridiculously forgotten about walking through the sewage. But Mara Jade had never apologized to anyone in her life, save the Emperor. And she couldn't bring herself to do it now.

Mara slowed her step slightly so she was walking next to Luke. For once, she almost wished he would read her mind, so he'd know how she felt, and how hard this was for her. With his next actions, Mara believed that he did.

Luke reached out tentatively and took her free hand. In the dim light of the glow rod, he gave her a shy, understanding smile.

"How much farther in this tunnel?" he asked, letting their argument drop.

Mara silently thanked the stars for his sensitivity.

"About a quarter of a kilometer, then we come out in a large tunnel that links all these smaller ones together. Beyond that it's a straight shot to the underground."

"How many smaller ones are there?"

"About a hundred, branching out all around the palace. They are the only underground means of exiting this place. And yes, they'll all be guarded by stormtroopers."

"And your plan to get past them was ...?"

"To let you distract them, of course."

"I'll see what I can come up with," Luke quipped.

Silence fell once more, a variety of thoughts swirling through both of them.

"I met the gold one once," Mara said abruptly, jolting Luke from his musings.

"What?"

"Your gold droid. The protocol one. I talked to him at Jabba's. You're right, I suppose. Droids can have feelings, of a sort. That one ... he ... was pretty nervous. Worried about whether his Master Luke would come rescue him."

Luke laughed lightly. "I knew there was a reason I didn't let him in on our plans. Leave it to Threepio to strike up a conversation with my would-be assassin."

"I have a servant droid myself," Mara continued. "Kaythree. Wonder if I'll ever see ... him ... again."

"I can't promise that you will."

Mara started to retort that she didn't need any promises from him, but the rebuke died on her lips. He was only trying to make her feel better. "Doesn't matter," she muttered. "He'd need a memory wipe and reprogramming anyway."

Luke just squeezed her hand in reply.

"We smell dreadful," Mara said, after another period of silence.

"Ahh," Luke replied. "So that's why there're no stormtroopers around. And I thought those helmets filtered out odors."

"Cute. There are no troopers in here because all they have to do is wait for us to wander out on our own. In fact, we should just about ..."

Mara was interrupted by a sewer rat scurrying across their path. Luke watched the rodent disappear into the shadows.

*Hmmm, I wonder...* He paused and stretched out with the Force.

*What are you doing?*

*Looking for our distraction.*

Luke eased past Mara, quietly approaching the now-in-view end of their personal tunnel. *We need to see what we're up against,* he sent behind him.

Mara's face contorted in indignation at her companion. Did he already forget who was in charge? She started to lash out, then bit her tongue, especially after the sewer debacle. Let the Jedi take a turn at guiding their escape. She just hoped he wouldn't get them both killed.

Pressed against the side of the passageway, Luke peered out from the shadows to see three stormtroopers standing at attention directly across from the tunnel's exit. He felt Mara come up close behind him, but didn't turn around. *How far up is the next opening?*

*Probably a couple hundred meters,* she sullenly replied.

*Can this entrance be seen from there?* he next inquired, purposely ignoring her tone.

Mara began to see where he was going with his questions. *I don't know,* she replied honestly. *All I could find out was that these dry tunnels are located every few hundred meters. And of course that means there will be tunnel exits, with guards posted, in both directions,* she reminded him.

Luke nodded but didn't answer. Concentrating, he reached out once more through the Force, then allowed himself a small smile as he found what he'd been seeking. Just a nudge ...

Mara peered over his shoulder impatiently. She wanted to push in front of him, but unwillingly admitted his black clothes provided better cover in the shadows than her sparkling green frock would.

*So what—?* Mara stopped as she observed one of the guards raise his hand to his built-in headset. The trooper then nodded to his closest colleague, and the two took off at a brisk pace northward. A moment later, two more guards marched by from a southern post, heading in the same direction.

Luke grimaced. He had optimistically hoped all three guards would be called from each post. He could sense Mara's anxious prodding to fill her in. *A nest of sewer rats, two tunnels northward, suspiciously sounds just like a pair of wanted fugitives.*

Not bad, she thought. *Now what?*

Good question. Luke gauged the remaining trooper's mindset. It was unlikely a similar diversion to the south would lure this one from his post. *I suppose we could just stun him,* Luke pondered, more to himself than to Mara.

*We could have stunned all three,* she retorted. *The idea is to leave no clue that this is where we exited.*

*I know,* he returned, a little too sharply. He blew out a quick breath, then turned back to look at Mara. *Ideas?*

She looked up at his blue eyes, shining brightly despite the near darkness. They needed ... SHE needed ... to put aside petty squabbling, and work together.

*There should only be one guard on the tunnels on either side of us, right?*

Luke probed outward briefly. *Right.*

*I can make noises to draw their attention away.*

*Both at the same—?*

Mara's eyes flashed indignantly.

*Nevermind.* Luke glanced back out at the guard standing directly across from them. *All right. I should be able to cloud this one's mind long enough for us to slip past.*

*You should be able?*

*I can do it.* A new level of determination colored his voice. He glanced back once more. *The others could return any moment. Let's go.*

The pair slipped from their hiding place, coordinating their distractions flawlessly. Luke effectively obscured them as they quickly, and soundlessly, made their way across the wide corridor and into a recess that led directly into Coruscant's underworld.

Mara paused a moment, looking back at the stormtrooper still standing at attention. Moments later, he was rejoined by the other two troopers and the trio resumed their post, determined that the escapees would never get by them.

As Luke and Mara ventured farther and farther away from the palace, the tunnels became increasingly darker and grimier. There was evidence, here and there, of the former glory of the days of the Old Republic. Brown, vile-smelling liquid oozed in rivulets down cracked marble columns. Long abandoned machinery stood rusting in dank, squalid chambers that once sheltered the cream of Coruscant's society.

As Mara trudged along, she could both hear and feel her wet feet squishing in her slippers. She avoided looking downward at the greenish slime covering her, toes to ankles. She did notice Luke glancing into every chamber, every spacious room they passed.

They had been gradually moving into a deserted industrial area when Luke suddenly darted into a decrepit courtyard between two crumbling warehouses. Unidentifiable vermin scattered in his wake.

"Hey!" Mara trailed after him, muttering curses under her breath. "What's so important in here?"

Luke had stopped at the far end of the expanse, a happy grin lighting up his face. He swept out one hand with a flourish. "Water!"

A stream of murky water, nearly a handspan deep, flowed along a dilapidated trough inset in the floor and disappeared into an open crevice.

"We can't drink that!" Mara retorted. Surely he wasn't so ignorant of water that he couldn't tell polluted run-off from a fresh waterway.

Luke exaggeratedly rolled his eyes, then plopped down at the edge of the trench and stuck his dirty boots into the current. "I thought," he began, looking pointedly at her feet, "you might want to rinse off. This may not be purified spring water, but it should do the trick."

Mara sat down next to him with a grunt. She hated it when he was one step ahead of her. Removing her already-ruined shoes, she dipped her feet into the brackish flow. At least it wasn't ice cold. She watched as Luke's slick boots came clean fairly quickly. Her feet were another matter. She could probably scrub them halfway satisfactorily with her hands, but the thought of having that smell then clinging to her hands nearly turned her stomach. She attempted to slosh her feet around, rubbing them together, but the effort was doomed.

Luke saw her eyeing her feet disdainfully. "Need a hand?" he offered.

"Why, got one to spare?" she groused back.

"I don't think the odor would cling to my right hand, the way it would real flesh."

Mara turned to him and cocked one eyebrow at his earnest expression. He was serious! She leaned back on her elbows, feigning a relaxed pose. "Whatever pleasures you, Jedi," she purred with a wink. "Be my guest."

Mara closed her eyes as she felt his hand massaging first one foot, then the other. Stars, that felt good! She was about to impart a rare compliment when he unexpectantly began tickling the soles of her feet. "Hey, what do you think you're doing?!" Mara sat up abruptly and jerked her feet away.

"What do you mean?" he said, laughing. "You tickled me, the other night in ... bed."

Mara looked over to see his face reddening noticeably.

"What are you so embarrassed about? I did tickle you, and we were in bed together. For the sake of the holocams, of course."

"Of course," Luke repeated stiffly. He rose, then offered her a hand up. Picking up her slippers, he swished them in the moving water, cleaning them as best he could. Avoiding her gaze, he thrust them into her grasp. "These should do till you find something better," he muttered.

His mood swings are sometimes worse than mine, Mara thought, shaking her head and following him on their flight to freedom.

* * * * * * * * *

Luke and Mara had been traveling several hours, making their way deeper and deeper into the squalid byways under the city. They soon realized they were attracting unwanted attention from the unfortunate residents of the tunnels.

"Huh?" Luke's confused expression mirrored his scrambled thoughts.

Mara shook her head in exasperation. "Let me rephrase. We need to find different clothes to wear. Especially me. Something less conspicuous."

"Oh, sure, sure," he agreed quickly. "So what do we do? Find the nearest Grungy Clothes Emporium?"

"Did anyone ever tell you that you have a lousy sense of humor?" Mara said with a snort.

"All the time." He winked at her, feeling somewhat relaxed for the first time that day. "So where should we look?"

Mara bit her lip in thought. "We could go back toward the surface and scavenge through some garbage dumpsters, I suppose."

Luke shook his head. "No, I don't think that's a good idea. Too risky."

Mara had to admit he was right. She gave him a sly look. "We could keep going until we find a couple corpses, and borrow their clothes."

Luke just stared at her. "I hope you're kidding."

Mara began to snicker, then snapped her fingers as an idea sprang to mind. "The Poor Drop!" she exclaimed.

"The what? Poor drop?" Luke didn't think he would ever get used to the sudden changes in her train of thought.

"Yes." Mara's eyes brightened in satisfaction, even as she nonchalantly brought her foot down on a scurrying spider-roach. "Every few days, the benevolent goody-goods of the upper crust drop food and old clothes down to the poor unfortunates of the lower levels. If we're in luck, today will be one of the days."

Luke narrowed his eyes in disbelief. "And the Emperor allows this?"

Mara shrugged. "He endorses it, actually."

"You're joking." This was more than even naïve Luke could believe. "I never thought of Palpatine as a humanitarian."

"Ah, but he is." Mara smiled. "With the emphasis on 'human.' As you may or may not have noticed," she raised an eyebrow, "many of the dwellers down here are alien. Keep them supplied with the basic necessities, they stay down here where they belong, instead of venturing topside where the decent, human, citizens live."

Luke let out a disgusted sigh. "All right, where do they have these drops?"

Mara studied their surroundings a moment to get her bearings. "I think they're south of each of the main plazas, which would make the nearest one ..." She turned to face a decrepit corridor to her right. "... that way."

The pair headed out in hopefully the right direction. The dank tunnels were soon becoming more crowded with beings of all species walking, crawling, and limping along the same course.

"I'd say we hit it right on the nose." Mara smiled smugly as they backed into a deserted niche, observing the huge crowd milling around two raised platforms in an open chamber. "They should be making the drops any moment now. When they do, I'll pull us out some clothes, and you gather up some food. Those few ration bars we have aren't going to last long."

The words were hardly out of her mouth when a loud grating noise sounded overhead, and huge panels retracted to reveal shafts extending upward. With a quick "Meet me back here," Mara shoved Luke toward the foodstuffs that were beginning to fall from one of the chutes, as she joined the throng converging on the garments piling up on the platform nearest her.

Mara sifted through the heap of cast-off attire, snatching up outerwear that appeared appropriate for 'blending in.' She retreated back to their secluded nook, clutching her prizes possessively.

She was examining a well-worn gray tunic, congratulating herself on snagging something that looked halfway close to her size, when she felt Luke finally approach. Without looking up, she pulled out the dingy brown tunic and pants she'd chosen for him and held them out in his direction.

"Here," she said, from her kneeling position. "I figured you needed something different, too. These should fit you."

She felt Luke take the garments from her grasp, but he didn't answer. Mara looked up at him questioningly. "Don't you approve? I had to fight off two Twi'leks and a Duros for those." She grinned wryly at him, but Luke's apprehensive expression didn't change. "And, look!" she added triumphantly, waving a pair of battered brown boots like a cherished treasure. "I think they may even fit me!"

Not getting the expected response, Mara narrowed her eyes and began to look around their small space. "Where is our food?" she blurted out. "Did you stuff it in your pockets?"

Luke shook his head apologetically. "I didn't get anything," he murmured, not meeting her eyes.

Mara put her hands on her hips. "You mean to tell me you weren't quick enough to grab us even some rohna bread?"

Luke dropped to his knees beside her. "I couldn't, Mara. I could feel their hunger, their desperation. These beings here are starving. I couldn't take food away from them."

Mara gazed briefly at the pained look on his face, then glanced down. Every day she spent with Luke, some new facet of his personality was illuminated for her. She had spent her life surrounded by greed and self-indulgence. And now she found herself paired with the most selfless person imaginable. She felt dirty, unworthy of his friendship.

"I hoped you would understand," Luke said softly, as she continued staring at the grimy stone floor. "Mara?"

"I've never met anyone like you before," she murmured quietly.

Luke worked his jaw in thought. "I'm not that unique," he finally said.

"You are, in my world."

"You're not part of that world anymore, Mara. That's in your past."

And are you in my future? she mused wistfully to herself, carefully hiding her thoughts.

"The Alliance is filled with good and benevolent beings," Luke was continuing. "We are fighting for the equality of all worlds." He looked around them. "No one should have to live like this."

Mara didn't reply, but instead began gathering up the clothes she had collected.

"What are you doing?" Luke asked, puzzled.

She swallowed the lump in her throat before answering. "I'm putting these back, what does it look like?"

He touched her arm lightly. "No, you don't have to. There's still plenty of clothes left on the platform. See?" He gestured with his head towards the raised ferrocrete base. "And you're right, we do need to blend in."

"Don't patronize me, Skywalker." She roughly pulled away from him. "I'm not one of your noble Jedi Knights, and I never will be."

Luke sighed heavily. Would he ever figure out the right thing to say to her?

"Quit your sighing, and change clothes," she ordered impatiently. "We can't sit here all day."

No, Luke decided, these erratic shifts in temperament were far beyond the capability of either a moisture farmer or a Jedi to understand.

Mara began stripping off her outer clothes, oblivious to the wide-eyed Jedi watching her. Luke didn't think he could ever be as complacent about changing clothes in front of each other as she appeared to be, but he sure wouldn't mind the opportunity of becoming accustomed to it.

Luke hastily turned around, pulled off what he considered his Jedi uniform, and donned the well-worn outfit Mara had given him. When he turned back, she was already changed and tugging her new boots on over mismatched socks. Luke began folding his black clothes into a small bundle when he noticed her discarded shimmersilk dress wadded into a corner.

"Aren't you going to save your dress?" he asked cautiously, not wanted to invoke her ire yet again, but not willing to ignore the matter either.

"Why? I'm never going to wear that thing again," she snapped.

"We shouldn't just leave it here. I mean ... somebody might find it, and trace it to us, and besides ..." He fumbled for the right words. "Well, I just think you should keep it."

"Getting attached to my wardrobe, are you, Farmboy?" she said with a smirk.

"It's just ..." He kept his eyes downcast, refusing to meet her gaze. "You may want to wear it again someday. It looks good on you."

Mara colored slightly at this unexpected compliment, refusing to acknowledge how much his words meant to her. She stared in wonder at the man kneeling across from her. Luke could go from stubborn and strong-willed, to altruistically generous, to downright bashful, all in the space of a heartbeat. Sometimes he made her dizzy just trying to keep up with him.

"I can roll it up with my things, and I'll even carry the pack." The words rushed out of his mouth before she could raise any more objections.

Mara reached over and tossed the sparkling frock to him. "If it means so much to you ..."

He nodded gratefully, flashing her a shy smile.

___________________________________________________________________________________ 

Dressed in their 'new' attire, Luke and Mara set out down one of the many dank tunnels spoking out from the site of the Poor Drop.

"It will take us several days to reach a spaceport," Mara commented. "I figure Vie'mat is our best bet. Security always seemed the most lax there."

"Then maybe we should avoid Vie'mat," Luke countered. "Don't you think they'll send extra troops to where they believe we're most likely to surface?"

"They'll send extra troops to every spaceport, flyboy."

"Hmmm," Luke mused. "A private hanger, then?"

"You stumble upon one, you let me know," Mara returned. She had a few possibilities in mind, but all were far from a safe bet.

"In any case, we need to make a detour to the surface," Luke pointed out.

"Detour? For what?"

"One of us failed to procure nourishment for us," he said, grinning sheepishly.

"Hummph."

"We can find some dumpsters to scrounge through," Luke reasoned.

"I thought you said that was too risky."

"For mere clothes, yes. Dinner is a whole other matter." His grin got even wider.

Mara shook her head in amusement. "And you think a farm boy like you can sniff out food for us?"

"Absolutely. Certainly better than a city girl like you." He ran an appraising eye over her slim figure. "Who doesn't look like she eats well, either."

* * * * * * * * * *

Luke and Mara made their way along the twisted maze of dingy passageways, following the rather vague directions given them by an inebriated Rybet.

Glad to now be in more comfortable and practical clothing, Mara stepped lightly over a tangle of rat-eaten power conduits. She felt the reassuring weight of her hold-out blaster on her left wrist, hidden by her ragged sleeve. Glancing to her side, she saw Luke had stuck his blaster into the waistband of his pants. No one they passed seemed to notice the weapon, though.

"You shielding that hardware?"

"No," he returned, his eyes continuing to dart into every dark recess they passed. "I don't think anyone down here cares."

"Hope you've got the safety on," she joked smartly.

This time he spared a glance in her direction. "Why? Worried I might shoot myself?"

"Or I might drill you with it, if you start to get on my nerves. I can manage pulling a trigger with the Force."

"We have no credits or valuables," Luke stated in a carefully controlled voice. "Move aside, and let us pass."

Mara recognized the Force manipulation in his tone. Influencing one, even two, minds was certainly within Luke's capabilities. But six at a time?

Scarface hesitated, a confused expression crossing his ugly face.

"He's usin' one of them sorcerer tricks, you fool!" shouted another grimy man, who had circled behind Luke.

*They know who we are!* Mara sent, her blaster swiveling cautiously from target to target in their stand-off.

*No kidding,* Luke returned dryly.

"What do you want?" Mara demanded, turning to address the more perceptive member of the group.

"Why, we want you, sweet cheeks." The man laughed nastily. "And your pretty boyfriend here."

Luke had no trouble feeling the indignant fury racing through Mara. *Stay calm!* he sent, not taking his eyes off their assailants.

One of the other men erupted in a loud snorting guffaw. "Sith, what I want is my share of that million credit bounty!"

"You're bounty hunters?" Luke stated the obvious.

"We are now, sonny," the apparent leader retorted, eliciting another round of laughter. "A million credits for a smart-mouthed redhead and a blonde spellcaster. Dead or alive. Look just like your holos, too, 'cept for them duds."

"Sorry to disappoint you ... gentlemen ... but you can't have us," Mara retorted, her mind racing to formulate a plan of attack.

*Hold your fire,* Luke warned her. *We can't take out three apiece before they'd get a shot off at us, not at this close range.*

"Just put down those blasters, and we won't have to go the 'dead' route," growled the leader, growing impatient to get this over with.

*So what do you suggest, oh high and mighty Jedi,* Mara snapped back, eyes narrowing.

*I suggest we even the odds a little,* Luke returned, bending slightly as if to lay down his weapon. He suddenly swept one hand in an arc, ripping the rifles from the relaxing grasp of the three men nearest him. Mara wasted no time in blasting two others as they gaped open-mouthed at this new turn of events. As Luke shot a third, the three disarmed men fell upon Mara and Luke, intent on overpowering them with both raw strength and the new sprinkling of weapons that appeared in their hands.

One burly thug wrestled Mara's blaster from her grip, though not without a great deal of difficulty. She retaliated with a powerful roundhouse kick to his head, slamming him against the slimy wall. Firmly grasping his head, Mara snapped his neck with one swift jerk.

Looking over, she saw the last two on Luke. One pinned his arms securely, while the other bore down on him waving a deadly looking vibro-blade. Luke kicked up his feet and pushed the blade wielder back. Mara followed up with a swift chop, the flat edge of her hand connecting with the back of his neck, dropping him like a duracrete block. Snatching up the man's blade, she slit his throat in the blink of an eye. Calling her blaster to her hand, Mara then shot the last man between the eyes just as Luke ducked out of the way.

"Stang, Mara! You could have shot me!" Luke protested.

"I knew you'd move." She lifted an eyebrow as Luke surveyed the area in dismay, appalled at the carnage surrounding them. "I believe that was five for me, and one for you," she boasted. "Now quit gawking and help me hide the bodies before anyone wanders by."

"I wasn't gawking," Luke grumbled, pulling one of the victims into a nearby, long-abandoned, storeroom.

"Don't start preaching that we should've stunned them, either," Mara growled disdainfully, tugging at a second corpse. "You know we couldn't leave any witnesses to our location."

"I know," Luke bit out, next dragging the man with the broken neck. "But was it really necessary to be this ... brutal?"

Mara halted his progress by roughly clasping his tunic. "Look, Skywalker, I'm an assassin. This is how I operate. Swift, clean, and efficient. If you've got objections ..." She hesitated, looking him in the eye. "... we could go our separate ways."

Luke bit his lower lip, returning her stare. "I think ... we should stick together. At least until we make it off planet."

Mara bent to retrieve the next lifeless victim, her exhalation of breath hiding her sigh of relief. "It would be easier to steal one ship together than each trying to hijack one."

"Yeah," came Luke's quiet agreement. He bent to retrieve a small object that had fallen from his load's pocket.

"What's that?" Mara paused to curiously eye his motions.

"Holocube." He flicked the small object on. Two miniature holos materialized side by side in the air just above the cube – holos of the same two people currently eyeing the spectacle. Mara read the Imperial edict inscribed below the images, snorting in derision.

"A million credits. Didn't know I was that valuable."

Luke deactivated the device and dropped it to the ground, crushing it beneath the heel of his boot. "Only a half mil for you. I'm on there too, if you didn't notice."

"Didn't take 'em long, did it?" Mara grunted with the weight of the burliest of the group.

"You could use the Force to lift him," Luke pointed out.

Mara let her unfortunate victim drop to the ground with a thud. "Be my guest."

Luke frowned at her insensitivity, then easily levitated the body through the dilapidated doorway.

"Why didn't you float them all in there?" Mara complained.

"I wasn't having trouble dragging them," he retorted.

"No, you were just having trouble killing them in the first place." Mara speared him with a haughty glare as she methodically searched through each bounty hunter's pockets.

Luke watched her with a look of disgust. "What are you doing?"

"Waste not, want not," she shot back, tossing him a small vibro-blade. She dropped the spare blaster power packs and handful of credits she'd found into her pack. "Maybe we can buy some food."

"Sure, and even tip the headwaiter for a window table," Luke retorted sarcastically, stuffing the blade into his boot. He figured he should be glad they'd already found other attire, or she'd be wanting to 'borrow' their clothes next.

Luke shook his head. All this snapping at each other wasn't gaining them a thing. "Let's go," he muttered, sticking his blaster back in his waistband and sealing the door behind them as best he could.

Mara stalked along beside him, though she kept her blaster in her hand. "Every two-bit scum in the city will be hunting for us. This smells like Vader's work. He has a propensity for using bounty hunters."

Luke frowned. "Maybe, except for the 'dead or alive' part. He always specified alive and well on previous bounties on me."

"Perhaps you've rejected his parental overtures one too many times," Mara scoffed, then softened her tone when she saw the downcast expression he wore. "Or maybe this is all Palpatine's doing. Regardless, we need to be more careful. Find something to camouflage our appearance."

"I wish we had cloaks with hoods," Luke mused.

"While you're wishing, how about wishing we were on a ship a dozen parsecs from here." Mara tucked stray strands of hair back into her loose braid. She knew her red-gold locks were the most identifiable feature about the two of them. "Can't you conjure up a Force disguise?"

"For both of us? Day and night? At the same time I'm shielding my presence? And monitoring for danger?" Luke shot her a derisive look. "I'm not that good. Yet."

"Ahh, so there is a cocky Jedi buried in there after all." Mara snickered, poking him in the chest. She was glad to see him in a somewhat better humor, and wondered briefly if all Jedi were this moody.

"No," Luke returned her bantering. "Just hanging around with Han too much."

The pair soon reached the outskirts of an immense underground domed chamber, similar to the one Luke had visited with Lando prior to their rescue of Leia from Black Sun. There would be no Ho'Din plant merchant to help him this time, though.

They kept to the back alleys, circling around until they reached the rear of what smelled to be some kind of eatery. Several times they had to crouch low, avoiding the proliferation of stormtrooper patrols present.

"Stay here," Luke ordered, motioning Mara down with one hand. "I'll go look through that dumpster."

"Hey!" She naturally started to object, but Luke cut her off.

"Yes, I know you're in charge. And you assigned me the task of food procurement, I believe. So let me carry out my task."

"Sorry," Mara said with a snicker, gesturing him toward the odorous bin. "I forgot how you enjoy groping through garbage."

Carefully checking the vicinity, Luke hopped to the edge of the dingy plasteel container. He started to reach down for a half-loaf of brown Noryath bread, but jerked his hand back as a ditmouse scampered out of the refuse.

*Doing okay?* Luke heard Mara's snort in his mind. He ignored her, pulling out the bread, along with some scraps of charbo-root and other unidentifiable vegetables and tubers. Finding a discarded cloth shopping bag, he stuffed it as full as he dared, avoiding the tempting pieces of grilled meat. Too much chance of spoilage, he decided. The last thing they needed was to come down with food poisoning.

When Luke hustled back to where he'd left Mara, he found she was nowhere to be seen. Doing his best to remain calm, he stretched out with the Force as much as he dared, still keeping his shield intact. He sensed her less than fifty meters down the alley, scrounging through refuse bins herself. She looked up as he approached, a mischievous grin on her face.

"What are you getting?" Luke asked, wrinkling his nose at the chemical smells wafting out from the small shop they were crouched behind. "What kind of place is this?"

"A place you've never been in, I'm sure," Mara said, chuckling. "It's an image emporium." At his baffled look, she added, "A styling boutique." She lifted some of her reddish-gold tresses. "For changing hair color, among other things."

Luke's eyebrows raised in understanding. "And you found some dye?"

"Yes," she replied, holding up several half-empty containers. "Should be enough for both of us."

"Okay." Luke looked around warily. "We'd better get out of here. We're probably pushing our luck hanging around here this long."

"What a worrier you are," Mara groused, though she too kept her guard up. She followed Luke through a section of empty ramshackle buildings, stopping as he ducked inside a dark dismal structure.

Luke stuck his head out a moment later, nodding for her to enter. "Looks safe."

"I'm so relieved to have your certification on that," she retorted dryly, brushing past him. She dragged a threadbare coverlet away from a window and settled herself on it, languidly tucking her legs under her. "All right, Skywalker, let's see if your picnic will compare to the one I provided in your suite."

"Very funny," Luke mumbled under his breath. Not daring to ignite a glow rod, he rummaged through his pack of scavenged fare by the light streaming dimly through the dusty transparisteel pane. He set the repast out in front of her with a flourish, complete with half-empty bottles of mineral water. "Your feast awaits, madam."

"What, no tomuon steak, no rycrit ribs?" Mara squinted in the gloom, sniffing suspiciously. "Are you sure this is edible?"

"No, I'm trying to poison you." He reached out and picked up a piece of dried yellowish root. Bracing himself, he bit off a chunk and chewed slowly. "It's delicious," he declared, working hard to keep a look of disgust off his face. "Tastes just like ... sautéed giviot root."

Mara warily picked out a small piece of the same food and took a small bite. She quickly spit it out. "Pasteboard, you mean!"

"Have to get your fiber," he said with a wink, though he put down his own portion. "We'll think of it as an appetizer." Looking over the meager selection, he next sampled some of the Noryath bread. "Better, really," he assured his skeptical dinner companion.

The entire meal pretty much followed the same path – Mara harping at Luke, Luke apologizing to Mara. Luke grew more sullen as they progressed through each course, barely acknowledging her acid comments. When they had eaten as much as they could force down, he gathered up the remainder and stuffed it back into his makeshift bag.

"You're actually going to save this fodder?" Mara grumbled indignantly.

"Unless you want to munch on granite slugs, or take our chances catching sewer rats to grill," he shot back, his patience nearly gone.

"That would be preferable to the swill you picked out," she retorted, her voice rising in vexation.

Luke started to rise to her bait, opening his mouth, then clamping it back shut. He rose to his feet and slung the bag over his shoulder, struggling to keep his seething emotions under control.

"Do you complain just out of habit, or do you have something against me personally?" Luke finally bit out over his shoulder, retreating to a shadowy corner.

Mara stiffened at his words. She had been hard on him, unnecessarily so. They were equals in this endeavor, but she was treating him like a despised underling. She straightened up, shouldered their backpack, and prepared to make amends.

Mara picked her way unerringly around the broken pieces of furniture to where Luke stood, peering blankly out their lone window. "Just out of habit," she said softly, touching his arm. "Skywalker, I'm ... I'm sorry."

She felt him relax a bit, though he didn't answer. "I've never had a partner before," she continued. "I've never met anyone I could rely on, anyone I could trust, like I do you."

This time Luke turned slightly to face her. "I'm sure the fact that I've reduced you to eating garbage hasn't helped," he muttered quietly.

"I knew what I was getting into." Mara took a quick breath, then plunged ahead. "Let's face it, I'm not a pleasant person. I need ... I need to absorb some of your influence. And not the part tainted by your friend Solo." She rubbed one hand lightly up his arm. "I want part of Luke Skywalker inside me."

Mara's hand froze on his arm, gripping it tightly. Stars, she hadn't really said that, had she?

Luke went slack-jawed a moment, then all sanity left him.

"Would you prefer that in the tub, or in the bed?"

His only coherent thought afterward was 'Skywalker, you're an imbecile.'

Silence fell again, punctuated finally by the sharp crack of Mara's hand across Luke's cheek.

"I wouldn't sleep with you if you were the last man in the galaxy," she growled in a low voice.

At that moment, Luke decided he most likely would be the last man in the galaxy to ever sleep with a woman. He vowed to put as much space between himself and Han and Lando as he could. All their womanizing advice only got him deeper into trouble.

"I thought you were different than other men." Mara pulled away from him, turning to stare out the window.

"I thought I was, too," he muttered, rubbing his cheek and feeling about as low as the grubworms he'd seen in the garbage dumpster.

Without warning, Mara grabbed his arm and dragged Luke away from the window.

"What—?" he started to sputter when she cut him off.

"Stormtroopers!"

Luke risked one glance out the window and saw a phalanx of troopers marching briskly down the alley in their direction. Oh, stang! Going out the door they'd come in was out of the question. But was there a backdoor to this hovel? Mara was already on her way to finding out.

*Do you think they know we're here?* Luke sent as they scrambled to the rear of their refuge.

*Could be a random patrol. Maybe we'll get lucky and they'll pass us by.* Of all the un-Mara-like things to say! His perpetual optimism wasn't the aspect of his personality she was hoping to be influenced by.

*I don't believe in luck, good or bad.* Luke led the way through the jumble of discarded clutter.

*Interesting point of view,* Mara retorted. In the near darkness she surveyed the tiny room they'd entered. No windows, no door. *Looks like bad luck to me.*

Luke felt along the rough sheets of plasteel that made up the back wall. Pushing with his hands, he felt one panel give way slightly. Bracing one shoulder against the loose section, he shoved outward with all his strength, adding some Force energy in the mix. What he wouldn't give for his lightsaber!

*Hurry!* Mara cautioned. *I think they hear us.*

*What do you think I'm ...* He gave one last exerted push and the panel broke off with a loud crack. *... doing!?* Luke made sure Mara followed him through the jagged opening before turning on his heels and fleeing down the squalid alleyway. The clatter of stormtrooper boots reverberated behind them, and blaster shots began filling the eerie stillness.

Mara returned fire as she ran, though she doubted her diminutive weapon would be very effectual against their armor, especially at this distance. Luke somehow found an entrance to another alley, which led to an even more desolate passageway, which ended in a series of crumbling stairwells leading ever deeper into the blight that was Imperial City's underground.

Luke reached out and grabbed Mara's arm, pulling her into one of the random stairways. They bolted lightly down the steps as quickly as the decaying duracrete allowed, swatting away a bothersome hawkbat rather than risk the echoing noise their blasters would make. They ran for hours, long after any trace of pursuit could be heard or sensed. Ducking into one of a multitude of long-forsaken tenements, Luke and Mara finally slumped against a wall, ignoring the squalid filth that surrounded them.

"Are you all right?" Luke wheezed.

"Just worry about yourself," Mara bit out, struggling to catch her breath. She closed her eyes briefly, then glanced at her companion. "We've lost them. You should sleep while we have the chance."

"I'm fine," Luke retorted. "I can keep going as well as you can."

"Don't be ridiculous, Skywalker. I've been trained to go without sleep for days at a time."

"I'm sure I could, too," he declared, but his determination was waning.

What little patience Mara had was wearing thin fast. "Look, whoever stays awake will have to shield the other." She gave him a hard look. "I trust myself to shield you a lot more than I trust you to shield me, especially as tired as you look."

Luke gave up. He had already decided he was no match for the fiery redhead in a 'glaring' showdown. And he was exhausted, no doubt about it.

"Wake me in two hours," he instructed her sternly, as he claimed an open spot on the floor. "I mean it."

"I will."

Luke curled up, pillowing his head on his arm as comfortably as he could. "Got me covered?" he asked, referring to their shared Force shield.

Mara frowned slightly as she reached out to hide his presence. She scooted over closer to him, and awkwardly rested a hand on his shoulder. "It seems to be easier when we're touching," she explained reluctantly.

Luke just nodded, feeling her Force touch cover him like a soothing blanket, and slumber soon claimed him.

Mara rested her head on her drawn-up knees, doing her best to ignore the cramp that was beginning to develop in her outstretched arm. She regretted not finding a more comfortable position to sit before Skywalker began dozing. She almost lost contact with him twice already when he twitched in his sleep.

"Blast!" She hurried to grab him as he stirred once more, moving away from her hold. Mara had had enough of this. "Skywalker! Wake up!" She shook him roughly, and he became instantly awake, hand moving toward his blaster.

"What's wrong?" he questioned as he swept their surroundings looking for danger.

"You, that's what," she snapped. "You're jerking around more than a mawrat with its tail on fire." She gave him a hard frown, then began inching back toward the wall, his tunic still clutched in her fist. "Scoot back here with me," she ordered.

"What are you doing?" Luke did his best to keep up with her, fearful she would literally drag him if he moved too slow to suit her.

Mara didn't respond immediately; instead she fashioned herself a niche in the mound of debris around them, then began maneuvering her companion close to her outstretched legs. "Here. Put your head in my lap."

Luke looked at her disbelief. "What?"

"I'm tired of trying to keep hold of you with my hand," she explained impatiently. "This way, I won't have to."

Giving Mara another dubious look, Luke settled his head where she indicated. Even through her worn leggings, the tactile contact warmed his cheek, and a soothing sensation spread throughout his body.

"Now go back to sleep, and try to lay still."

Luke closed his eyes, endeavoring to carry out her commands, and imagining how much Han and Chewie would kid him about this if they ever found out.

Mara leaned her head back against a cushion of tattered rags. How far she had fallen. From the Emperor's court to a squalid trashheap. And she had never felt freer in her life. No matter what the future held, she knew she had made the right choice.

Mara had no illusions regarding their chances of getting out of this alive. She knew the Emperor was ruthless in hunting down anyone who crossed him. She was usually the one doing the hunting. So who would he send after her? Vader? Possibly. She knew of no one else skilled enough to track them down. She and Luke couldn't maintain this Force shield forever. She and Luke ...

She glanced down at the tousled blond head resting peacefully on her legs. Surprisingly, he had barely moved a muscle since beginning the new sleeping arrangement. Maybe she had been a bit rash in her vow to never sleep with him. They'd already tested out that course once already, if you wanted to get literal. It was the best night's sleep she could ever remember.

Mara's thoughts drifted easily to that night in Luke's suite. She would never forget how wonderful it had been waking up with his arms around her, how natural it had felt. She already regretted striking him, and was glad to see the red mark on his cheek was fading fast. She was certainly going to have to change her approach if she ever wanted to share his bed in the future.

Mara sighed and absently stroked Luke's sandy locks. His hair had darkened quite a bit from the holos she'd seen of his early days with the Rebellion. Too much time since he'd left the twin suns of Tatooine. She continued running her fingers through his marginally clean hair. Hair that would soon become even darker. In fact, Mara thought as she squinted at her chrono in the gloom, it was about time for Mr. Sunshine to rise and shine.

Before she could even jostle him, Luke began to stir on his own. Though Mara could sense he was awake, he didn't get in a hurry to move from his comfortable position.

"Let me guess, internal chrono?" Mara intruded on his silent thoughts.

"Yeah," came the quiet reply.

"Uhh, well, ... Skywalker, about what happened earlier ... I'm sorry I slapped you." Mara bit her lip apprehensively. She didn't know if she'd ever get used to gushing out apologies. It was so foreign to her nature, but the more time she spent with Luke, the more she seemed to consider the feelings of others.

"I'm sorry I made such an inappropriate remark." Luke had apologies down pat.

Mara gave a self-deprecating chuckle. "With what I said, how could you resist?"

"I'm resisting right now," Luke mumbled, staring out past her kneecaps.

Mara reached down and affectionately swatted at his hair. She couldn't believe she was allowing him to still lie there like that. "Nerf," she muttered under her breath, leaning her head back against the wall.

This time Luke rose up and twisted around to look at her. "What did you call me?"

"Nerf," she repeated. "You got a problem with that?"

Luke shook his head, sitting up beside her. "No, ... it's just that ..., it's an expression Leia likes to use."

Great, now she was reminding him of his girlfriend. "You'll make it back to her," Mara said, after a moment's silence.

"Not if we sit here all day."

"Hold on, not so fast." Mara tugged at his tunic as he started to rise.

"I'm sorry." Luke stopped short. "Did you want to sleep awhile first?"

"No," Mara assured him. "But there's a little matter of dying some hair."

"You brought the dye?"

"I already had it packed," Mara said, shrugging. She began pulling out the partially used bottles, which Luke eyed warily.

"You sure that's all the same color?"

"Nope," she said with a laugh. "So that's why I'm going to mix it all together."

"All right," Luke drug out slowly, still not convinced about this whole business. He watched as Mara poured all the contents into the biggest of the plastique containers. "You first."

His eyes widened suddenly as Mara began pulling off her outer tunic. "What are you doing?"

"We want to dye our hair, not our clothes."

Luke watched, fascinated, as Mara knelt and tilted her head forward, long golden-red tresses brushing close to the grimy stone floor. She worked most of the concoction into her hair, gradually turning it a dark shade of brown. Finally she threw her head back and turned to her silent audience. "Well, is it even? How do I look?"

"Different," he said, nodding.

"That's the idea," she returned. She gestured for him to come closer. "Your turn."

"I can do it myself."

"Nonsense," Mara disagreed. "My hands are already brown. Take off your tunic and get your noggin over here."

Luke did as he was instructed, kneeling perfectly still. "Will that come off your hands?"

"Sure, if I clean them right away." She chuckled. "They don't make it out of sewer sludge."

Luke finally relaxed as Mara's surprisingly soft touch massaged the colorant down to his scalp. This actually feels good, he thought, his mind wandering to visions of her running her hands through his hair in other settings ...

All too soon, Mara pulled back, gathering the empty bottles together. "There, all done." She fingered the ends of her own darkened locks, then glanced back at him. "Just like twins."

Luke jerked at that statement, an undecipherable look crossing his face. "Not funny," he muttered. Daydreaming about one girl who turned out to be his twin was all he could handle in a lifetime.

Luckily, Mara didn't press, and Luke didn't elaborate. She found a stagnant pool of dirty water just outside their little refuge and rinsed her hands quickly. Re-donning their tunics, the pair of escapees continued on their trek.

 __________________________________________________________________________________

Darth Vader stood in silence, watching as his troopers examined the broken remains of six bounty hunters.

"We found this, my lord." A haggard lieutenant held out the crushed remnants of a small holocube. Vader waved him off. He knew what the object was, just as he knew who caused the deaths of these inept blunderers.

There were no telltale traces of his son's presence, nor of Jade's. But the evidence of their handiwork was unmistakable. The Emperor's Hand, no doubt, did more than her share of the killing, Vader thought as he gazed upon the dried blood adorning one victim's throat. Her skills as an assassin were admirable, he had to admit. But her strength of will in defying the Emperor – that was what was truly astonishing.

Had Luke persuaded her to join him, or had she decided to flee on her own after learning of her would-be fate if Luke wouldn't turn? That the two of them would team up in their efforts was also remarkable, as each represented what the other abhorred.

The Dark Lord paced the small storeroom as the stormtroopers disposed of the bodies into a floating cart. He thought back to the holo-recordings he'd viewed of Luke's suite. Could he have misread the relationship between Luke and Jade? He had guessed Luke was fond of the woman. She'd said it herself – Luke was a caring person. But was Jade capable of truly caring for someone? She had been Palpatine's puppet all her young life. Up until a few days ago, Vader had thought of her as only a callous, ruthless, killer. But now ...

He hoped, for Luke's sake, that she wasn't merely using him for her own selfish motives. He didn't want to believe his son was shallow enough to be beguiled by only her physical attributes. Luke seemed to have an uncanny gift of insight into a person's true psyche, though. Wasn't he himself still haunted by the young man's words on Endor? – 'I can feel the good inside you, Father ...'

Vader shook his head wearily. No, it was too late for him. He had no choice but to obey his master – a master who would show no mercy when the escapees were apprehended.

Earlier that morning, a patrol in the domed Western Underground reported a possible sighting of Jade and Skywalker. Lord Vader had visited the site, but like here, no vestige of their Force presence was detectable. Those stormtroopers would be severely punished for their failure to detain the fugitives, just as the palace guards had been. Palpatine had been so furious over Luke and Mara's successful escape that he fried Herkin on the spot.

The Dark Lord reached out yet again for his son, but was met by the same blank wall. Not expecting an answer, he sent the plea nevertheless – *Luke ... son ... hear me. Surrender, and your life will be spared. Luke ...* Vader clenched one fist in frustration. Their Force shield was stronger than anything Jade could have managed on her own, especially with being in place continuously for nearly a full day now. Luke's powers were growing by leaps and bounds, and Jade was taking full advantage of them.

With his cape billowing behind him, Darth Vader led the way back to the transport. It was imperative that he recapture his son, regardless of whether Luke's destiny was as an accomplice in overthrowing Palpatine, or as an executed prisoner. The fate of the galaxy balanced on the fate of Luke Skywalker.

* * * * * * * * * * *

As Luke and Mara ventured on, they continually passed scores of shabby beings of all species, some begging, some cowering in dark corners, some obviously looking for opportunities to prey on their less fortunate brethren. As they passed one particular dank alcove, Luke could hear whimpering in the shadows. Peering closer, he could make out two huddled figures in threadbare rags.

"Please, sir," a weak voice rasped in broken Basic. "If you have any food to spare ... for my child. Just a few crumbs."

Luke could feel their hunger and despair tearing at his heart. "Yes, of course." He jerked around as Mara yanked his arm.

*What are you doing?!* Her face reflected her strong disapproval. *This could be a trap.*

*It's not,* he returned emphatically, as he pulled out of her grasp and turned back to the beggars. He produced the remainder of their Noryath bread and handed it to the mother, along with a container of their precious water.

"Bless you, kind sir," the being said in grateful appreciation. "May fortune smile on you and your companion."

"Thank you," Luke whispered, laying one hand lightly on the bundled child. He didn't sense any illness, only malnutrition.

Standing behind Luke, Mara rolled her eyes in exasperation as he stood to leave. "You are way too soft-hearted and trusting, Sk—" Luke gave her a sharp look, and she caught herself. Resuming their hike down the clammy corridor, she continued her lecture. "You don't even know what species they were. You can't save every pathetic lifeform you come across."

"They were Gotals, not that it makes any difference," he bit out. "I know I can't help everyone, but don't expect me to be indifferent to their suffering. I can't do that." Luke stopped short, a frown appearing on his face.

"What's the matter?" Mara questioned, watching him carefully.

He shook his head, then continued walking. "Nothing."

"Skywalker ..." Mara growled, making it clear that his answer wasn't to her satisfaction.

"Father was calling to me," he murmured.

"And?"

"And that was it." He glanced at her briefly. "He won't find us. He can't break through our shield." He looked away, then turned back, a renewed sense of determination shadowing his features as he quickened his gait. "We need to use false names when others are around," Luke continued matter-of-factly.

"All right," Mara replied, sensing he was in no mood to discuss his father at the moment. "What do you suggest?"

"I don't know." He surprised her with a crooked grin. "You don't seem to have any trouble finding plenty of names to call me."

"That's not hard," she humphed, "with a uncouth farmboy like you." She eyed him with a wicked gleam. "Foy."

"Huh?"

"Figure it out."

It took Luke another dozen or so paces to connect 'foy' with 'farmboy.' It took him much longer to come up with an appropriate rejoinder.

They traveled on for several hours, delving deeper and deeper into the city's dismal abyss. Mara stumbled slightly as a weary yawn escaped her.

"You need to sleep," Luke admonished. "C'irl."

Mara yawned again. "What was that?" Took him long enough to think of something, she thought sleepily. But what did it mean?

"Figure it out," he shot back. "While you're falling asleep." He guided her into yet another deserted chamber. There didn't seem to be any shortage of long-abandoned structures. Luke wondered briefly how many years ago this level had been a thriving area in the lives of civilized society. In the early days of the Old Republic, perhaps?

"I'll just lay next to you," she murmured.

"Ahh, ahh, ahh." Luke shook his head. "I have to return the favor." He pulled her closer. "Maybe we can even risk a fire and find something to grill when you wake up."

"This isn't some campout," she groused, nestling her head gingerly in Luke's lap, her dull brown hair spilling over his outstretched legs. Admit it, girl. The very thought of being THIS close to him, in THIS position, was unsettling to say the least.

"Now what would a city girl like you know about campouts?" He pulled a tattered piece of cloth over her hunched form. She was too tired to even retort, but somewhere in her foggy mind the words 'city girl' and 'C'irl' flowed together. Her last waking thought was - it took him two hours to think of that?

Luke found himself rather enjoying the sensation of Mara's closeness and her warmth. Making sure his grip on their Force shield was strongly intact, he closed his eyes against the squalor surrounding them, and used the Force to block his olfactory sense from the stench.

Mara fell asleep quickly, her breathing even and calm. Luke reached a hand out cautiously, running it through her darkened locks. He thought back to the night she spent in his suite. In his bed ... He couldn't fathom anything more wonderful than having her lying next to him. His outside senses may want to remind him that they were in the bowels of hell, running for their lives, but his libido was telling him he was in paradise.

And then she moved. Turned over, to be exact, with her head now resting against his stomach. Luke shifted ever so slightly, and resumed stroking her hair. Mara moaned in response and snuggled even closer, wrapping her arms behind him and clutching him tightly against her face.

He recalled the details vividly; had committed them to memory, tucked away in a little corner of his mind she couldn't easily see. He'd dreamt he and Mara were in the whirlpool, but they weren't practicing the Force or discussing escape plans this time. He was lying against the sloped side of the tub, water chest high. Mara was leaning against him, kissing him with an unbelievable gentleness. Water dripped from her red-gold hair, glistening on her smooth shoulders.

In the crazy way of dreams, he wasn't able to see the rest of her body, but somehow he knew neither of them was wearing the usual last-holdout of undergarments. Mara's eyes sparkled at him with a passion so hungry it made his head spin. Luke smiled to himself in the darkness, recalling her purr out his name. His first name, not his last name, not some derogatory nickname. She had parted her lips and ... growled.

Luke frowned. No, wait, there hadn't been any growling in his dream. Moaning, maybe, but definitely no growling. Yet there it was again ...

Luke jerked upright so quickly he banged his head against the wall, his eyes straining wide-open into the gloom. Silhouetted against the dim light from the outer corridor stood a spine-chilling sight – a monstrous rodentlike creature, ten times bigger than anything Luke had seen so far in the underground tunnels. An armored plating covered its nearly two-meter-long body, wicked spines sticking up from its humped back.

Luke held his breath as another growl emitted from the animal's pointed snout, which was framed by a pair of fearsome tusks. He felt in the darkness for his blaster, which he'd pulled out of his waistband earlier, not wanted to risk shooting himself or Mara. Stang, where was it? Must have gotten pushed aside when Mara had rolled over.

Calm. Gotta stay calm. Maybe it will just go away.

Luke attempted to instill a jolt of fear into the creature's mind, but its primitive brain didn't even seem to recognize the concept. Its beady eyes did seem to recognize an easy meal when it saw one, though, and its sharp claws scraped the ferrocrete floor as it skulked closer to its intended prey. Luke was contemplating the possible success of a Force barrier when Mara suddenly rose up on one elbow.

"What's that noise?" she groused sleepily, irritated by what she perceived to be her pillow's stomach growling.

"Don't move!" Luke shouted, but it was too late. With an angry snarl, the beast leapt at them, jagged teeth dripping with saliva. Now wide-awake, Mara rolled back into Luke in an attempt to see what was coming at her. She tried to reach her wrist blaster, but found one arm tangled behind her companion. Irritated at her inability to retrieve her favorite weapon, she was scrambling for the vibro-blade she'd confiscated from the bounty hunter when she stopped short, watching in fascinated horror as the gruesome animal writhed in agony, guttural squeals echoing in the room.

After several moments, the creature's hideous shrieks died out, along with its spasmodic jerks of death. It lay still, its sinister black claws only centimeters from Mara's drawn-up form.

With her arms free by now, Mara could hear Luke's labored breathing next to her as she found her backpack and pulled out one of their glow rods. She pointed the light at the fallen animal, nudging it with an outstretched foot to assure herself of its demise, though she could sense no life emanating from it. Sweeping the glow rod around the room, she caught a glimpse of Luke's taut face, beaded with perspiration.

"What happened?" she demanded. "How did you ...?"

"I strangled it," Luke whispered weakly, his voice wrought with pain.

Mara's eyes opened wide in astonishment as she looked between him and the huge creature. "With the Force? You mean like Vader chokes peop..." She bit her tongue at the slip. Of all the things to remind him of! "Sorry." Mara threw back the makeshift blanket and shuffled to her feet, checking the reassuring feel of her blaster on the way up. She also verified to herself that Luke hadn't lost his grip on the Force shield around their presence. He glanced at her silently as she resumed her own shield personally, relieving him of the burden.

Feeling more in control of her situation now, and watching warily for any possible additional attackers, Mara circled around the fallen creature. She remembered the amazement from Jabba's court when the young Jedi had killed the rancor. But that had been more due to his wits and quick thinking than any raw Force power. It was the gate he'd triggered that had landed the fatal blow. But this, this was altogether different. This was worthy of Vader himself.

She noticed Luke still staring blankly at the creature, arms wrapped around his legs, chin resting on his knees.

"I've often wondered what it feels like to him." Luke spoke so softly she barely heard him. "Whether he has ever felt any remorse."

Mara walked back and knelt by his side. "Skywalker, this was a primitive beast, not a sentient being. You did what you had to."

Just as Luke was about to reply, they were interrupted by the sounds of footsteps coming closer. Several humans and aliens entered the small room, most brandishing weapons of one sort or another.

"We heard the commotion," a bearded man leading the party began. "By all the fires of hell, will ya look at that?!"

The others crowded in behind him, shining decrepit glow lamps and makeshift torches at the sight before them.

"Is it dead?" lisped a bedraggled Rodian.

"How did you ever kill it?" added a Twi'lek, his dirty, scarred lekku twitching nervously.

The visitors began poking and prodding at the creature, all the while giving Luke and Mara curious glances. Luke finally rose to his feet, ignoring the questions. "Do you know what kind of animal it is?" he posed an inquiry of his own.

"It's called a borrat," the bearded human informed them. "It's been terrorizing these tunnels for months. Killed three beings last week alone."

"We think it migrated up from the lower levels," put in a female Snivvian. "My mate was one of those killed."

"Are there more?" Mara broached, wanting to confirm that this was indeed the same creature.

"No, they don't travel in packs," the Twi'lek explained. "This is the only one we've seen."

"How did you kill it?" the Rodian repeated the earlier question. All eyes turned to the two young people.

"We stunned it," Mara said quickly, wanting to save Luke from any kind of reply. "And then we battered it over the head with a block of duracrete."

Everyone took a step backwards from the creature. "Are you sure it's dead?" somebody asked.

"We're sure," Luke finally spoke up. He gave Mara a frown, but didn't dispute her tale.

"However you did it, we are grateful." The Snivvian followed up her words by clasping Mara's hands in thankfulness, then did the same to Luke. Soon everyone was surrounding them, gushing words and other displays of gratitude.

"This calls for a celebration," the human announced, and the others cheered in agreement. "We'll feast on roast borrat tonight!" Vibroblades and other cutting implements appeared in the hands of several of the beings, and they instantly set to work at skinning the tough hide off the beast and butchering it into small bloody slabs.

"You must join us," the Snivvian said to Luke and Mara. "We have a large chamber close by with a cooking hearth. You will be our guests of honor. After all, it is your kill."

Luke started to shake his head in declination, but Mara stepped in front of him. "Of course we will come." She grabbed Luke's elbow, guiding him out of the room. Her taste buds were already salivating with the thought of fresh grilled meat; she didn't care where it came from.

They followed the ragtag troupe down a nearby corridor, sidestepping the trail of dripping blood from the prized spoils. Soon they came to a spacious antechamber, no doubt once an elegant gathering area for Old Republic high society. Several more assorted beings sat huddled around a large hearth where a small fire burned, its smoke rising into grated vents in the ceiling.

The human and the Twi'lek took charge of making introductions of their fellow vagabonds. The Twi'lek then turned to Luke and Mara. "I'm afraid I don't know your names."

Mara spoke up first. "I am C'irl ... D'Linn, and this is my brother Foy."

As the others talked, Luke appraised their hosts. He sensed neither recognition of them from the motley group, nor ill will. Several of them were already skewering strips of borrat meat onto long metal rods, which they then suspended above the cooking fire. Mara noticed his eyeing of the others, and sidled over next to him.

"I think we're safe here, for the time being," she whispered. "No one acts suspicious."

"Guess so," he murmured.

Mara was beginning to be concerned over Luke's sullen behavior. This wasn't like him at all; he was taking this way too hard. "I'll go get us something to eat," she offered, getting only a slight nod of acknowledgement in return.

She soon was back with a long skewer of grilled meat, its aroma filling her senses with anticipation. She tore off a small piece and held it out for Luke.

"I'm not hungry," he muttered, gazing at the floor.

"You need to eat something," she insisted, frowning at his stubbornness. "Or are you too good to eat a rodent? You could always roast some of those roots you've been dragging along."

He finally gave her a wry sideways glance. "I'm sure I've eaten more womp rats in my life than you'd care to hear about. Besides, aren't you the one that said we weren't on a campout?"

"My empty stomach changed my mind." Mara tasted a bite of the seared fare. "Not too bad. Not roasted Uln, but edible."

Luke suddenly stood, closing himself off from her probes. "I'm going for a walk," he announced.

"Foy," Mara called after him.

"It's all right." He glanced back at her. "I won't go far."

Blast that man, Mara thought, continuing to chew on her dinner but no longer tasting its flavor. Just when she thought she had him all figured out, he does a one-hundred-eighty degree turn. Finishing her portion, she ignored the questioning stares of the others as she followed Luke's path out of the chamber.

She had no trouble finding him in a deserted side passage.

"Hey." She reached around him, clasping his arm. "All this moping isn't good for your health."

Luke refused to look at her, but didn't shake off her touch. "I choked the life out of it, Mara. You said it – just like my father does."

"That's not what I meant," she protested. "You did it in self-defense. There was no hate or malice in you. I've had plenty of experience witnessing the dark side. You were not using it when you killed that thing."

"But I touched on it the other morning, with Herkin." He turned to look her in the eye. "You felt it, I know you did."

"And you immediately regretted it. I felt that, too."

"I need to constantly be on vigil, though." Luke sighed to himself in frustration. "Sith, I can't even keep watch against dumb animals. I should have sensed the borrat coming, long before it got that close. I was responsible for our safety while you were sleeping, and what was I doing? – daydreaming!"

"When are you going to get it through your thick skull that you are not responsible for me, awake or asleep?"

Luke ignored her comment, continuing on his train of thought. "Yoda didn't want to train me because I had always looked away to other things instead of what I was supposed to be doing. Uncle Owen constantly admonished me for having my head in the clouds." Luke leaned back against a wall, squeezing his eyes shut. "I once overheard Aunt Beru remind him that my father was a dreamer, too. And you know what happened to him."

"Maybe what happened to him was because he lost sight of those dreams." Mara gently took both his hands in hers. "You're a good man, Skywalker. Don't try to change."

Lost in his own thoughts, Luke didn't answer.

"Now, just out of curiosity," Mara continued, "what were you daydreaming about?"

"Doesn't matter." Luke shook his head and smiled weakly. "Something I have no business thinking about."

Mara gave him a peeved look, but didn't press. "C'mon. Let's go get our packs and be on our way."

Soon, Mara and Luke were once more traveling through the dingy tunnels, leaving their hosts with little more than a superficial explanation. They continued on far into the night, at least according to what their chronos told them. Mara finally convinced Luke it was his turn to rest.

"But you didn't get your whole two hours last time," he objected. "You should sleep awhile first."

"You know, Skywalker," Mara grumbled, "you're beginning to argue as much as me." She slid down in a heap, absently scratching her scalp. "I didn't think that hair dye would itch this much."

Luke found himself rubbing his side, then reaching down to scratch his leg. "I have a feeling it's not the dye," he murmured reluctantly.

"You think we picked up some kind of ... infestation?" Mara wondered aloud.

"We haven't exactly been living under the most sanitary of conditions," he pointed out.

"Well, isn't this just great," Mara groused, then pointed to her lap. "Now lay down and go to sleep."

Luke obediently did as she ordered, both fearful and anxious of what kind of dreams he might experience in the next two hours.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Soon they were once more on their way, determined to put as much distance between themselves and the Emperor as possible. They'd been traveling for some time when Mara yawned widely, stumbling slightly in the process.

"Time for somebody's beauty rest." Luke reached out to steady her elbow.

Mara jerked away indignantly. "I'm fine."

"Look, you haven't slept since yesterday evening, and not that much then." Luke continued ahead several dozen meters and poked his head into the remains of a large room. "Must have been some kind of meeting room, or even a school," he said, noting the jumble of decaying desks and chairs.

"Yeah, a few hundred years ago," Mara groused, coming up behind him.

Luke glanced around and spotted a large table turned on its side, draped with a piece of filthy curtain. "That looks like a cozy spot for a nap," he said, nodding with his head.

Mara sighed in acquiescence and bent down to inspect the shelter. She quickly drew back, though, a startled look on her face.

"We can't go under there," she bit out.

"Why not?"

"It's already occupied," she replied, annoyed that apparently both of them were too tired to sense the current inhabitants. "Looks like a couple of Bimms."

"Bimms are friendly." Luke smiled teasingly. "I'm sure they'd share."

"Well, I'm not asking. They're busy."

"Doing what?"

"Being friendly with each other." Mara gave him a pointed look.

"Oh," Luke murmured, hoping his inevitable blush wasn't too noticeable.

Luke crossed to the other side of the spacious room, and began bunching up more scraps of the once-elegant draperies. "How about over here?"

"All right," Mara agreed wearily.

Luke settled himself down to a sitting position, then held out a hand to her. "C'mon."

Mara bit her lip, her eyes traveling to his lap.

"Uh, why don't you just lean up against me?" he suggested cautiously, patting his chest lightly.

"If you're sure that much contact won't send those male hormones into a frenzy," she said sarcastically.

Depends on what you do in your sleep, he thought. Luke tugged her close and Mara carefully lay against him, nestling her head on his shoulder. "Now don't you get so comfortable that you fall asleep too," she warned.

"I'm fine," he retorted, echoing her own earlier affirmation.

"Yeah, so fine you didn't even sense those Bimms over there. You got me shielded?"

"I do, Desert Scout honor. Now go to sleep."

As Mara drifted to sleep, Luke glanced over at the makeshift tent across the room. He should have felt the Bimms' presence, even if they didn't pose a danger. He and Mara couldn't afford to lower their guard, even for a second.

Luke pulled a portion of heavy cloth over Mara, then wrapped his arms around her protectively. She had fallen asleep almost instantly, proof of her exhaustion. A short while later, two very satisfied-looking Bimms crawled out from under their refuge. As they began to exit, the male spotted the two huddled humans, and gave Luke a sly look out of the corner of his eye. "You're welcome to use our space, my friend," he said in stilted Basic. "We have it warmed up for you."

Luke smiled weakly, but shook his head. "Thanks anyway, but I'm not allowed to get that friendly."

The Bimm nodded sympathetically, and followed his mate out the crumbling doorway.

* * * * * * * * *

Two hours later, Mara's internal chrono signaled her that it was time to awaken, but her body didn't want to leave the comfort and warmth of her partner's embrace. She hadn't realized how much never being close to anyone had left her feeling empty inside until the first time this man's arms had held her.

Opening her eyes, Mara looked up into Luke's shining blue gaze. Shifting slightly, she reached up and caressed his cheek gently, guiding his lips down to meet hers. Resisting at first, Luke finally yielded, pulling her against him tightly. They stretched out on the floor, a searing passion overcoming both of them. Mara ran one hand under his tunic, just as she had done so many times under the scrutiny of the suite's holocams. But this was no case of putting on an act for anyone; this was a fire that was consuming them both.

Though Luke was kissing her hungrily and fervently, he hadn't yet tried to press his tongue into her mouth. Mara could, however, feel his body pressing insistently against her. She knew for a fact he'd not had relations since he was captured by Palpatine, nearly three weeks ago. Didn't most men crave it more often than that? Was she ready for that step? Here? Now? With him? Somehow the 'with him' part was the easiest to answer. She couldn't imagine anyone else.

As Luke pushed Mara down into the rough folds of the tattered draperies, he felt as if all semblance of self-control had abandoned him. He thirsted for her touch, as a dying man in the desert would yearn for water. Luke ran one hand across her slim waist and down her hip. She was so soft, and he moaned into the nape of her throat as she caressed him seductively.

Compared to his racing heart and sweaty palms, Mara appeared to him to be cool, calm, and collected. And most likely, waiting for him to guide their actions. Was she expecting him to guide them over to the tent-covered table? Panic suddenly gripped Luke's mind. Could he really carry through with what they'd started? Through the Force he could easily feel both her eagerness and her apprehension. She'd be anticipating an experienced lover who would know all the right ways to gratify her needs – not some clumsy, innocent farmkid that had never done much more than kiss a girl. He could never possibly measure up to the men she'd probably been with in the past.

As she desperately tried to control her panting breath, Mara could feel Luke's hand moving tentatively under her tunic, then down her hip and across her thigh. She found herself responding in kind, running her fingers under his waistband, then across the seat of his pants, invoking a low moan as he pulled open her collar and planted kisses along her neck. It wasn't only Luke's body that Mara could feel, however. His Force presence was enveloping her, overwhelming her with his desire. But along with that desire she could detect his increasing hesitation.

Luke paused as another thought occurred to him. Would he be able to maintain his Force shield if he continued? His emotions would be skyrocketing all over Imperial City like fireworks at a Life Day celebration. No way His Excellency and dear ol' Dad were going to miss that. And he wasn't about to ask Mara to cover both of them.

Sith, what are you thinking, Skywalker, even considering this? Fleeing for your life, and you suddenly decide to stop and lose your virginity? He wanted her, needed her. But not like this, not wallowing with wanton abandon like depraved animals, on the filthy floor of some crumbling subterranean chamber. Mara was too important, too special to him. Luke shut his eyes tightly. He respected her too much, and Uncle Owen had drilled into him that showing respect for a woman was paramount.

Once more Mara asked herself if she were ready. Being intimate with Luke had crossed her mind on more than one occasion ever since Palpatine had handed out her assignment. While she was grateful for escaping those ever-intrusive holocams, this was hardly the circumstances, or surroundings, she'd dreamed of either. What would Luke's reaction be if she wouldn't ... couldn't ...

Mara was saved from any decision-making when Luke suddenly grabbed her hand, halting its wandering path.

"No," he rasped in a ragged breath. "We can't do this. I can't. It isn't right." He cupped her face with his grime-covered hands. "Mara, this is not my path. Not now. I have a mission, a directive, to end Palpatine's reign of terror and return my father to the Light. I can't let myself be distracted."

"No, wait ..., Mara ..." Once again Luke had to attempt to extract his foot from his mouth. Would he ever learn to express himself without offending her? "I only meant—"

"You said exactly what you meant." Mara retrieved her pack and settled it on her shoulders. Had she been doing something wrong, that he stopped so abruptly? Had she just missed her only chance at experiencing a man's love? "You're right. Neither of us can afford to stray from the task at hand."

Mara swung around to find herself looking straight into his penitent gaze, begging her for forgiveness. What had she been thinking, leading him on like that? Not that he hadn't seemed to be a willing follower. Maybe that was the whole crux of her discomfort. He hadn't been a follower; he'd taken charge. And she still couldn't accept relinquishing that prerogative to anyone, even if deep down inside, relief was winning out over indignation.

"We need to get going," she practically whispered. "We need to go topside and start looking for a ship."

Luke nodded in agreement, but didn't trust himself to answer aloud. Had he just prevented them from experiencing the most beautiful thing possible, or saved them from making the biggest mistake of their lives? His mind told him he had been correct about avoiding distractions. Mere musings of the wrong kind had nearly gotten them killed by the borrat. But his heart told him Mara Jade would be the first, and only, woman he would ever make love to.

_____________________________________________________________________________________ 

Han Solo closed the ramp of the Millenium Falcon behind Leia and him. After much debate, it was decided Lando and Chewie would stay on standby with the Falcon, alert to swoop in at Han's signal.

"Well?" Han questioned several hours later as he and Leia waited at the maglev train station, their features concealed by heavy hooded cloaks. "Anything?"

"No," Leia conceded in a quiet voice. "But I may be too far away, and I'm not really sure how to contact him."

"Leia ..." Han growled in exasperation.

"Han, please." She gripped his arm, asking for patience. "I want to wait until we're closer to the palace, then I'll just ... just call his name in my mind. I think that's how he did it on Bespin."

Han covered Leia's hand with his own, willing himself to stay calm. "All right, sweetheart." He nodded as a passenger car slid to a halt on its repulsor track. "This one should take us within a few kilometers of the palace. It'll be safer going the rest of the way on foot."

Leia nodded in agreement. "I'll try calling him on the way."

Han smiled, feeling the reassuring weight of his blaster against his hip. "We'll get him out, Leia, don't worry. The Emperor himself isn't going to stop us."

Leia turned her warm brown eyes in Han's direction. "Have I told you lately how much I love you?"

"Hmmm ... Let me think ..." Han reached under his hood to stroke his chin in contemplation as they settled themselves on a grimy plasteel bench in the hovering compartment. "I can't seem to recall ..."

Leia gave him a short jab with her elbow. "Nerf-herder," she muttered, just before snuggling in close to his side. The whining hum of the train reached her ears as she contemplated yet again how to reach out to her newfound brother.

* * * * * * * *

She paused as Luke stirred restlessly, mouthing undecipherable utterances. After a few minutes, he began muttering louder, both vocally and through the Force. "Leia ... Leia ... I'm here ..."

Mara tightened the shield around them and roughly jostled him awake.

"Skywalker!"

He jerked and sat up, rubbing his eyes and instinctively reinstating his own Force shield. "What? Do you have to wake me up every time I'm asleep?"

"You were talking in your sleep," she replied, as if this explained everything.

"Huh?" He shot her a wary look. "What was I saying?"

"You were calling to your princess," she answered, not bothering to hide the disdain in her voice. "I was afraid you might try to reach through our shield."

"I guess I was dreaming." He purposely ignored her tone of voice. "I thought I could ..." He stopped suddenly, as if listening, an intense look crossing his face. "Stang! Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"She is here!"

"Who?"

"Leia! She's calling to me."

Mara looked at him like he had suddenly grown head-tails.

Luke reached over and grabbed her hand. "Listen! Listen through my mind."

Mara skeptically entered his mind, then started when a faint voice drifted in. "Luke ... we're coming for you ... Luke ..."

"Sithspit! She's Force-sensitive?!"

Luke gave a detached nod, a stricken look filling him. "She's going to get herself captured. I've got to warn her."

Mara jerked him around to face her, dropping his hand. "Skywalker, don't you dare answer her!"

"But she's probably heading for the palace, looking for me. She'll be captured, along with whomever she has with her."

"Better her than us."

Luke gave her a hard look. "I can't let Leia be captured."

Mara glared right back at him. "If you drop your shield to answer her, Palpatine will zero in on us in a second, and then we'll be captured. How is that going to help your precious princess?"

Luke only reacted with a 'I know you're right but I don't like it' look. Unlike his previous uses of the Force, he couldn't possibly extend his shield far enough to reach his sister.

"No doubt Palpatine and Vader can hear her, too. There's probably troops closing in on her already," Mara continued, frustrated at this new development. "Doesn't the fool know better than to reveal herself like that?"

Luke shook his head. "I doubt she realizes it. In fact, I'm surprised she has the control to reach me. We have to intercept her before they find her." He could feel the objections forming in Mara's mind, and cut her off before she could speak. "We have to. I'll go by myself if you don't want to come with me."

Mara had never seen Skywalker so adamant. She nodded in resignation. "We should stick together. Neither of us will be able to sleep if we separate."

"I'm not sure we can take the time to sleep," he muttered as he rose, slinging their pack over his shoulder.

The pair backtracked toward the palace, Luke setting an almost desperate pace. After traveling for hours, he allowed Mara a short nap, but refused to take one himself. He considered defying her and lowering his shield just long enough to warn Leia away, but he knew Mara was right. Getting himself recaptured was not going to help Leia.

"Can you still hear her voice?" Mara commented, as they resumed their harried trek.

"Off and on. She's getting frustrated at not receiving an answer." Luke gave Mara a pointed look, which she ignored.

"You realize they could be letting her continue, just to lure you in."

"I've thought of that. Originality doesn't seem to be the Empire's strong suit."

"Learning from your mistakes doesn't seem to be yours," Mara retorted.

"Guess not," he bit out. Ben and Yoda were probably disowning him by now, but he was not going to sacrifice Leia just so he could escape. At least this time he would be prepared for a possible trap. And he had an accomplice – he hoped.

"She must really care for you, to risk her neck like this," Mara continued.

Luke nodded, not replying.

"Maybe she even loves you," she goaded, trying for some kind of response.

He paused and looked at her. "I'm sure she does."

This was definitely not the response Mara was expecting. Or wanting, a little voice was telling her.

"Do you love her?" Mara asked softly, as they picked their way over a pile of rubble.

"Of course," he answered quickly. Too quickly to suit Mara. 'If you didn't want to hear the answer, you shouldn't have asked the question,' the voice was back, taunting her. With a frown she glanced at her companion as he pressed forward, then hurried to catch up.

By day's end, Mara was hungry, exhausted, and frustrated, both at herself and at Luke.

"I can't believe I'm willingly going back toward the palace just to rescue your lover."

Luke skidded to a halt. "My what?!"

"You heard me. You're in love with her. You told me so yourself."

"No, I didn't," he protested, then understanding dawned in his eyes. "You're adding extra prepositions in there that don't belong."

"Huh?"

"I agreed with you when you asked if I loved her. I didn't say anything about being in love with her."

Mara gave him the most condescending look she could muster. "You know, Skywalker, you are the most exasperating person I have ever met."

Green eyes blazed in fury. Luke hurriedly grabbed her upraised hand. "Hold on, I was kidding."

Mara calmed slightly. Still holding onto her hand, Luke tugged her over to sit next to him on a nearby block of ferrocrete.

"I thought we were in a hurry," Mara groused.

"I think we need to take a second to clear something up." He turned to face her, giving her a little half-smile. "Leia's my sister, Mara. My twin sister."

Mara's eyes widened at the same moment her jaw dropped open.

"I love her very much. And I'm not going to allow anything to happen to her. Not while I still have a breath left in my body." Steely resolve echoed in his voice.

"Whoa," Mara choked out. "This certainly puts a new twist on things." In more ways than one, she thought to herself. "Do Vader and Palpatine know this?"

"No. I don't think so."

"You don't think so?"

Luke sighed. "I did my best to keep it hidden from them. Palpatine would surely have brought it up if he knew. As to Father ..." He shook his head. "I don't think he knows either."

Even though she had begun to see Darth Vader in a new light during the past week, Mara still had a hard time accepting that the Sith lord was Luke's father.

"So, does this make you the Prince of Alderaan?" Mara asked, as they resumed their trek.

"Hardly," Luke said with a chuckle. "Leia was adopted by the Organas. I'm just a farmboy from Tatooine."

"You didn't grow up together?" This was getting more and more interesting. Little of Luke's early life had been included in her briefings.

"We were separated and hidden soon after we were born. We didn't even know we were related until recently." Luke's voice had an air of wistfulness to it. As Mara didn't answer right away, he glanced her direction. "What about you, Mara? Do you have any family?"

Mara seemed so deep in thought, he was sorry he asked.

"I don't know," she finally whispered. "I've been at the palace ever since I can remember. Whatever family I might have had ... has been hidden from me."

Luke reached over and squeezed her hand. "I'm sorry."

Though she didn't pull her hand away immediately, she did look up at him sharply. "I don't need your sympathy or anyone else's, farmboy. Keep your pity for someone who cares."

He gave her an acknowledging nod, and dropped her hand. "We're getting close to the palace."

* * * * * * * * * * *

Han and Leia were within a half dozen blocks of the Imperial Palace when their luck ran out.

"Get down!" Han shouted, pushing Leia behind him as shots whizzed past. He could make out blaster fire coming from at least seven or eight directions. He and Leia were crouching behind some packing crates in what appeared to be the outskirts of a supply depot for the palace.

Han had more than a few reservations that they could safely find, much less extrapolate, Luke from the depths of the Imperial prison. He had hoped, however, to at least make it up to the palace itself. Leia had received no answer to her unceasing pleas for her brother's attention. Though she couldn't bring herself to utter the words 'give up,' for that she would never do, Han could tell that Luke's silence was tearing her apart. After losing her foster parents and all of Alderaan, he feared that even the strong-willed princess wouldn't be able to cope if their rescue mission ended in the discovery of Luke's death.

A glimpse of white stormtrooper armor could be seen as Han let loose another volley of return fire. Beside him, Leia peered over the edge of a large crate and took careful aim at their adversaries. They couldn't be sure how many of their shots were finding their target, but the attack on them didn't decrease in intensity whatsoever.

"We're surrounded!" Han threw over his shoulder.

"How did they recognize us?" Leia sent back as she squeezed her trigger.

"What makes you think they do? Maybe they just don't take kindly to strangers passing this way."

"I doubt ... Wait!" Leia strained to see and hear as more shots sounded west of their position. "I hear other shots."

"Yeah. They brought in reinforcements," Han retorted dubiously.

"No." Leia shook her head emphatically. "No, listen."

Muffled thuds sounded, followed by silence. Han and Leia didn't have time to contemplate the mystery as they continued to defend themselves on the remaining three fronts. Within minutes, however, the barrage to the north and south had also stopped, simultaneously.

"What the—?!" Before Han could even finish the exclamation, the last vestige of trooper fire went the way of the others before it.

"We seem to have a savior," Leia murmured. "Do you think Lando or Chewie followed us?"

"There has to be at least two of 'em." Han was equally puzzled. "Lando and Chewie wouldn't both leave the ship."

"Then who?"

"I think we're about to find out," Han muttered, holding his blaster warily as two slender figures approached in the distance – a man and a woman, both shabbily dressed, both with dark brown hair, and both holding lowered blasters.

"Definitely not Chewie or Lando," Han wisecracked. But as he turned to Leia, she was scrambling out of her sheltered position, eyes wide in joyful hope. "Hey, Leia," he cautioned, making a futile grab for her arm. "Hold on, we don't know—"

But Leia was already on her way toward one of the rescuers, her cape flying out behind her. Han cautiously held his finger near his trigger, squinting at the male figure who had started jogging toward the princess. The guy almost looked like ...

"Luke!" Leia cried, flinging herself into her brother's outstretched arms. Luke responded by swinging her around enthusiastically just as Han reached the reunited siblings.

"Luke – what in blazes are you doing out here?!" Han exclaimed. "We expected to have to break you out of some Imp detention cell."

"We escaped four days ago," the Jedi explained, looking back and forth at the others. "You shouldn't have come; it's too dangerous."

"We couldn't just leave you here," Leia protested, still clutching Luke's arm, but with her gaze traveling to Luke's companion.

"Doesn't look like he needed your help," the mysterious woman snapped.

"And just who are you?" Han spoke up.

Luke disentangled himself from Leia's grasp and touched Mara's arm lightly before she could shoot back a reply. "This is Mara Jade – she helped me escape." He looked Mara in the eye, gesturing with a nod toward the others. "This is—"

"I know who they are," she bit out. "Let's cut the small talk and get the hell out of here."

"Uh, Luke," Han began, breaking the awkward silence as they headed off in the direction he and Leia had just come from. "You said you escaped four days ago?" He was trying to think of a diplomatic way of asking why then were Luke and this woman only blocks away from the palace. "Were they holding you somewhere else?"

"We had made it to the other side of the city," Mara interjected sourly before Luke opened his mouth, "about to steal a ship and make it off-planet."

"We hadn't even found a ship yet," Luke contradicted dryly.

"But how did you know we were here?" Leia asked.

Mara just rolled her eyes and stalked ahead.

"I could hear you," Luke admitted. "We followed your calling through the Force."

"But I couldn't hear you back," Leia protested. "What was I doing wrong?"

"Everything," Mara mumbled over her shoulder, eliciting a frown from Luke.

"Leia, I—" Luke began to address his sister's concerns, but stopped mid-sentence, a worried look appearing on his face as he studied their surroundings. "Something's not right here."

Han watched as Mara stopped also, glancing at Luke then looking around, too. She had apparently either picked up on Luke's apprehension or had sensed whatever was out-of-place on her own.

All four of the travelers tightened their grips on their blasters, eyes darting furtively into the shadows.

"Mara?" Luke whispered quietly.

"I know," she responded in a low voice.

"What's going on?" Han growled, moving closer to Leia.

"We're surrounded," Luke muttered.

"By who?" Leia asked, straining to see what her brother was perceiving.

"By ..."

Before Luke could finish, a legion of stormtroopers appeared in unison, standing shoulder to shoulder and encircling their prey with raised blaster rifles. Luke whipped his head to his right, closed his eyes briefly and let out a reluctant sigh just moments before the troopers in that direction parted to let through an ominous dark figure.

"Darth Vader," Han breathed, before turning to study Luke's now defiant expression. He remembered the young Jedi's fears that Vader could sense him when they were approaching Endor. Had the Sith Lord followed him here?

"Skywalker," the Dark Lord intoned, "and Jade. Did you really believe you could escape the forces of the Empire?"

Luke remained silent, but Mara spat out, "We nearly did, and you know it."

Vader gave Mara a momentary glance, then turned to the captain of his troops, who had already confiscated the prisoners' blasters. "Search them, then cuff Skywalker and Jade. The Emperor wishes to personally see to their fate."

"And the other two, my Lord?" the officer questioned, as the troopers took possession of their comlinks, vibroblades, glow rods, and all the various explosives Han and Leia had brought with them.

"Dispose of them," Vader directed.

*Father, no!* Luke sent mentally.

As two pairs of stormtroopers approached Han and Leia, Luke shot out one hand and the troopers were shoved back by an invisible force, eliciting gaping wide-eyed stares from their intended targets.

"Luke?" Leia wondered aloud, but he ignored his sister, facing Vader instead.

"Let them go. It's me you want, Lord Vader. Let the others go and I'll come willingly."

"Luke, no!" Leia cried, struggling in the grip of another stormtrooper.

"They are leaders of the Rebellion." Vader looked down at his son. "Do you expect me to just release them?"

"Don't kill them." Luke stared at Vader's impassive mask. *Please, Father.*

The Sith met his son's unwavering gaze. "Bring all of them," he issued the new directive. The entourage headed toward the waiting repulsor transport.

"I told you they were using her to lure you into a trap," Mara growled quietly to Luke, who was shuffling along beside her.

"And I told you I wouldn't abandon her." Luke's blue eyes flashed in warning, causing Mara to fall into a sullen silence.

Upon arriving at the lower levels of the Imperial Palace, the four prisoners were marched into a bare, dimly lit holding cell, completely devoid of any furnishings.

"You will wait here," Vader announced as guards removed the cuffs from the would-be fugitives. "His Excellency is preoccupied with affairs of the Empire." Darth Vader gave Luke one last look, then with a swirl of his cape he was gone, the durasteel door hissing shut with a loud whoosh.

"'Preoccupied' my foot," Mara snorted. "He wants to give us time to 'reflect on our insignificance.'" She watched as Han and Leia examined the perimeter of their abode of captivity. Luke had leaned back against one cold wall, closing his eyes and reaching out with the Force to seek out the monitors he knew must exist. Mara shook her head, then chose a spot on the opposite wall and leaned back also, arms crossed over her chest. "You're all wasting your time. Of course there are hidden holocams in here. And you can forget about finding a way out. This cell is escape-proof."

Luke squinted one eye open questioningly.

*I designed it myself,* she sent in reply.

Han swung around and faced her, hands on his hips. "Just how do you know so much? Who the hell are you, anyway?"

Mara narrowed her emerald eyes dangerously. "I'm the Emperor's—"

"Dancer," Luke interjected quickly. "She's a court dancer."

Luke and Mara glowered daggers at each other across the room while Han and Leia looked back and forth between the two of them.

"I can speak for myself, Skywalker," Mara bit out.

"A dancer, huh?" Han gave her a skeptical look.

"Yeah, Solo. What did you think I was going to say? Concubine?" She ignored Luke as he suddenly straightened up, shooting her an apprehensive look. *Don't worry, farmboy. I won't tell them I was your concubine.*

"And a dancer would know about detention cells?" Han continued.

Mara shrugged. "I overhear things from the palace guards."

Mara continued her relaxed pose, again casually shrugging her shoulders. "I felt sorry for him. They were going to execute him."

"Well, he's on the executioner's roll call list again. What a coincidence."

"Only this time," Luke put in wearily, "I've pulled the rest of you on there with me."

"They pulled themselves in," Mara said dryly. "You can't blame yourself for that."

"Or maybe you were manipulated by someone into believing you were escaping, just to lure me and Leia in." Though Han directed his comments to Luke, he fixed an accusatory stare at Mara.

Mara threw her hand up in unabashed disgust. "Farmboy and I would have already been off-planet if Miss High-and-Mighty hadn't been stupid enough to call to him through the Force!"

"What?!" Startled, Leia looked to her brother for his certain denial.

"Hey!" Han shouted in protest. "Look, sister, you watch your mouth."

Luke quickly interposed himself between Han and Mara. "Calm down," he addressed them both. "Arguing isn't going to accomplish anything." He clutched Mara's hands with his own, holding her tightly. "I'll handle this, Mara," he said quietly and sternly.

She glared at him, then relented as she met his unwavering gaze. "Fine," she bit out, dropping his hands and stalking off to one corner of the room. "You just handle everything."

"Nice girl you found yourself there, Luke," Han mumbled under his breath.

Leia's gaze followed the other woman; she then turned worried eyes to her brother. "Luke? Is what she said true? I need to know."

"Leia ..." Luke slid an arm around her shoulders and led her to sit against the wall. "When you use the Force as you did, to call to me, other Force-users can hear you, especially ones as powerful as Palpatine and Vader." Luke caught the glimmer of relief from Leia that he didn't refer to Vader as 'Father.' "We think that they were able to zero in on your presence, and followed your movements."

"And they knew you'd come to me." Leia slumped back, not able to meet Luke's gaze. "We were bait, just like at Bespin," she whispered.

"Leia, you couldn't have known. You came because you cared about me. Don't you realize how good that makes me feel?" He leaned back and gave her a crooked smile. "Even if, in this case, I would've preferred you'd listened to Han, and stayed where it was safe."

Leia only shook her head in mock annoyance – Luke knew them both too well. Han, however, was rubbing his chin in deep thought.

"I don't know much about this Force business, but why couldn't Vader and Palpatine just find you through the Force? How'd you manage to get away?"

Luke took a quick glance across the room, then spoke in an even voice. "Mara taught me how to shield my presence, so I wouldn't be detected."

"And that's why I couldn't feel you either?" Leia was beginning to sort out the puzzle.

Luke nodded. "And why I didn't answer you. I'm sorry about that, Leia, but if I'd lowered the shield to call to you, even for a moment ..." He compressed his lips in a tight line. "I should have risked it anyway. I thought I could reach you before Vader did."

"You did what you thought best, Luke." Leia looked over at her brother's companion, still pouting in an opposite corner. "So she can use the Force, too?"

"Yes."

"And I take it she didn't completely agree with your coming back here?"

"Well ... no."

"So why didn't you part company with her?"

Luke shuffled a bit nervously in his spot. "We needed to stay together. We were taking turns shielding each other while the other slept."

Neither Leia nor Han pressed for any more details, and the three of them drifted into a guarded conversation about the events at Endor. Leia wanted to tell Luke about the upcoming Alliance raid on Imperial City, now just a mere twelve hours away, but she knew it was too risky. No matter what happened to them, she couldn't jeopardize the secrecy of that mission – the future of the galaxy depended on it.

Eventually, Leia's fatigue caught up with her, and she drifted off to sleep, snuggled up against Han's strong chest, and leaving Luke and Han alone with their thoughts.

"So, what's your plan for getting us out of here?" Han finally asked.

"Me? I thought you two were in charge of this rescue." Luke gave his friend a wry look. "I did my part – I got recaptured just so you'd have somebody to liberate."

Han shook his head, then took another look at Luke's appearance. "What happened to your hair, by the way?"

"Part of our wonderful disguise," Luke muttered, fingering the hem of his dirty, worn tunic, then scratching absently at the back of his head.

"So she's not a brunette either?" Han continued, nodding toward the other occupant of the cell.

"No," Luke answered quietly.

"Say, Luke," Han began after another extended silence, "Leia told me all about who you're related to."

Luke gave him a rather skeptical look. "And you're okay with that?"

"Sure, why wouldn't I be?"

"I just ... I'm surprised Leia told you ... everything. I don't think she's accepted all of it yet."

"'Course she has," Han assured him. "Family is important to her."

"But he tortured her," Luke protested, shifting his position to sit up straighter. "And tortured you, and put you in carbonite."

"Uh, you lost me here." It certainly wasn't the first time Han had trouble following Luke's train of thought, but he was starting to get that familiar 'bad feeling.' "What are you talking about?"

Just then Luke felt Leia's wakening presence, and turned to see the tears streaming down her stricken face as she pulled back from Han's embrace.

"I'm sorry, Luke," she whispered apologetically. "I couldn't tell him. I kept hoping you were wrong."

Han looked back and forth between the two of them. The pieces of the puzzle were starting to fall into place, and Han wasn't liking what he saw – Luke's strength in the Force; the Empire's bounty on him, alive and unharmed; Luke's conviction that there was good in Vader. Heck, he had even started wearing black all the time, just like ...

So maybe it was possible. For Luke, yes. But Leia? Not Leia. Not his Leia.

Han could see the fear in her eyes. Fear that she would lose him all over again. "It's all right, Leia," he tried to reassure her. "I mean, you can't help it if ... he ..." Han couldn't even choke out the name.

"Anakin Skywalker," Luke spoke up, as the other two turned to him. "His true name is Anakin Skywalker. He was once a Jedi Knight, and ..." He trailed off as Leia curled back into Han's arms, quietly listening to Han's whispered words of comfort.

Luke had no trouble discerning that Han and Leia needed to be alone for awhile, and truth be told, there was someone he needed to talk to also. As he started to rise, Han threw him the cloak he'd been wearing. "She looks chilly," he said with a wink, before turning back to Leia.

Mara didn't look up as Luke slid down beside her, but she didn't pull away, either, as he laid one hand lightly over hers.

"I thought you weren't going to tell anyone else about your father," she commented in a blasé tone.

"Guess I need to work on finding out how much people already know before blurting out things," he replied dryly. "Mara," he continued, "I'm sorry I got you into this." She glanced at his earnest face, but didn't answer. "I should have insisted that you go on by yourself. You could be stowed away on some freighter by now."

"Skywalker, listen to yourself. You think you could 'insist' that I do anything I didn't want to?"

"No." Luke chucked quietly as he laid one side of his face on his drawn-up knees. "But I wanted to save you from the Emperor's wrath."

"The only way you could have saved me, physically, is by turning to the dark side. And that move would have doomed us all – the whole galaxy." She met his gaze evenly. "By holding firm to your beliefs, you saved my soul, my spirit. No matter what happens to us, I'll always be indebted to you."

"You're being awfully understanding about all this," Luke said quietly after a lull in the conversation, gesturing out at their current situation.

"For me, you mean? You're not the only one who can be full of surprises, farmboy," she said, before taking on a wistful look. "I had been sitting here, simmering, angry at the whole galaxy, when I finally started observing you with your sister and your friend. I didn't see any of the expected animosity between you. There was no laying of blame for ending up in a fix like this. I've never had that kind of friendship with anyone, that degree of closeness."

"I was hoping you considered me a close friend."

"Even knowing who I am? What I've done in the past?"

"That doesn't matter to me, you know that." He looked her in the eye. "Are you sorry you decided to come with me?"

"With you out of the palace, or with you back toward it?"

"Either. Both."

She clasped his hand warmly. "Luke Skywalker, I don't regret one moment of our time together."

"Neither do I." He squeezed her hand back reassuringly. "Well, except maybe that we never got a chance to ... you know."

"And ruin a beautiful friendship?" Mara said with a snicker. "We had a chance, farmboy. We had lots of chances." She let go his hand and wrapped her arms around herself, lost once more in her own thoughts.

"I'm not looking forward to seeing him again."

Without even asking, Luke knew she was referring to Palpatine.

Suddenly Mara looked Luke straight in the eye and grasped his hand once more. "Skywalker, promise me something."

"Anything," he responded automatically.

"I'm afraid he'll try to draw me back into his clutches." Her pleading eyes bore into Luke's. "Promise me you won't let that happen; kill me if you have to. I don't want to be brainwashed again."

"Mara, ... I ... I could never kill you." Mara's desperation was tearing at his heart, but that was a vow he couldn't bring himself to make.

"Would you rather I became his puppet once more? Perhaps even ordered to hunt down your friends?"

"You can resist him; you did it once, and you can again," Luke argued steadfastly.

"I'm not sure I can." She squeezed his hand tighter. "Not without you beside me." Her voice became more urgent. "You'll have to do it quickly, before they have a chance to kill you first."

Luke studied their entwined fingers. "We will face him together, and resist him together. And if ... you outlive me, ... you will defy him yourself." He glanced up at her haunted face. "You are one of the most strong-willed people I have ever met. I have faith in you."

Mara started to speak, then compressed her lips in a straight line. Clenching her jaw, she gave him a confident nod. She would try her best to defy Palpatine. No, she wouldn't just try; she would 'do.' Luke had faith in her, and that meant more to her than anything her former master could throw at her.

Mara stared at the cell's floor, glad that Luke was remaining silent. She finally fixed her gaze on Han's cape, lying forgotten by Luke's feet. "You saving that wrap for a special occasion?"

"Oh, sorry!" Luke grabbed up the covering and draped it over Mara's shoulders, grateful that she was changing the subject. "Maybe we should get some sleep while we can," he suggested.

"It has been awhile since we could both sleep at the same time," Mara agreed, leaning onto his shoulder without waiting for an invitation.

"Hmmm." Luke relaxed as they huddled together under the heavy cape. He picked up the pack containing their clothes, the only thing the guards hadn't confiscated from them, and pillowed it behind his head. "Remind me to thank Palpatine for this opportunity," he murmured, catching Han's thumbs-up gesture just before closing his eyes.

With the sound of Han's rhythmic breathing of slumber beneath her, Leia Organa watched with slitted eyes as Luke and his new companion clung to each other, now also in peaceful slumber. Mara Jade was an enigma, no doubt about it. When they were first introduced, if you could call it that, the woman was haughty, brazen and apparently no stranger to bickering with Luke or anyone else that crossed her path. Her sullen behavior had continued into their confinement in this cell – right up until several hours ago, when Luke had deigned to go sit next to her. Then, at least from her and Han's vantage point, she seemed to have melted into a different person.

Leia remembered watching as Mara and Luke had talked quietly, smiled shyly, always touching, always focusing solely on each other.

"I think they're lovers," Han had whispered into Leia's ear.

"Oh, Han," Leia had objected, though the possibility had crossed her mind too. "Luke? Our Luke? Who turns six shades of red when a pretty woman comes anywhere near him?"

"He's not turning red now," Han had commented casually, just before shooting Luke some kind of macho signal, then smugly settling into a seemingly relaxed posture himself.

No, he hadn't, Leia had to admit to herself now in the stillness of the cell, wondering once more what secrets this mysterious woman was harboring. Her and Luke's claim that she was merely a dancer seemed shaky at best. She was too skilled, too knowledgeable. And how would Luke have ever met an Imperial court dancer from the confines of a detention cell? No, they were hiding something. Something Leia vowed to discover, if they somehow managed to survive this latest predicament.

Leia paused from her musings as she caught a sense of her brother stirring in his sleep. Her brother. There was another mystery to ponder. From the moment they'd met, nearly four years ago, she'd felt like she'd known him all her life. Leia looked over as Luke wound one arm around his sleeping partner, pulling her closer. Or perhaps, she didn't know him at all.

Leia's eyes widened as the objects of her reflections began to awaken. One of Luke's hands slowly caressed Mara's cheek, and he bent his head down until their foreheads met. They seemed to be conversing, though no sound escaped their lips.

Any further action was cut short by the swishing open of the cell door. Four heads swiveled to the towering black shadow that filled the doorway, including Han's, who had jolted awake purely by instinct.

Darth Vader motioned toward Luke and Mara as guards moved to jerk the pair to a standing position and encompass them in shackles, ignoring Han and Leia. "The Emperor is ready to see you now."

"You mean we have to leave these deluxe accommodations?" Jade quipped sarcastically as Luke silently stared at his father. She stubbornly resisted as the troopers pushed them toward the doorway, just as a matter of principle.

"So all of us don't get to meet His Exaltedness?" Han piped up, shielding Leia behind him. They had decided their best chance of escape would be for the four of them to overpower their guards simultaneously when led from the cell. Split up like this would not work to their advantage, especially with Vader himself overseeing the transfer. Han didn't like it when the sabacc cards changed in the middle of a hand.

"You will be dealt with soon enough, Solo," Vader rasped, not interfering when Luke paused near the princess and the smuggler on the way out.

"Take care of her, Han," Luke requested quietly, before looking at his sister. "Goodbye, Leia," he added, sending her feelings of love and comfort.

"Luke, no!" Leia struggled to get past Han, who held her back in the face of the muzzles of a half dozen blaster rifles.

"They're going to execute him," Leia lamented sorrowfully as the door slid shut once more. "And it's all my fault."

"Now, Leia." Han wrapped his arms around her. "Luke can get himself out of all kinds of scrapes."

"He didn't get himself out of that ice field on Hoth," Leia muttered, fighting to hold back the tears. "Or off that weathervane on Bespin."

"Sweetheart," Han soothed. "Luke's matured ten years since those events." He cupped Leia's chin in his strong hand, surprising even himself with his next declaration. "He's a Jedi Knight now." He gave her a sly wink. "With a knock-out of an accomplice."

____________________________________________________________________________________ 

As they reached the steps to the Emperor's throne, Luke and Mara were roughly shoved to their knees by their guards, who in turn were immediately dismissed by their ruler. Palpatine casually flicked a finger, and their manacles clattered to the floor, just as Luke's had on the Death Star.

"So, my children," the withered sovereign crowed, "you foolishly thought you could escape. I offered you power and prestige, but you chose poverty and hunger."

"We chose freedom," Mara spat, clenching her fists. "The only foolish thing I did was follow you blindly for years."

"Watch your tongue, Mara Jade, or I shall change my mind and delegate you to be the first to die, instead of the Princess."

At the word 'princess,' Luke's head snapped up, dread filling his eyes.

"Yes, my young Jedi, your turn will come also," the Emperor rasped. "But I deemed it would be an even more rewarding punishment to have you witness the deaths of those you care for before you suffer your own miserable end."

A hologram suddenly flickered to life near Palpatine's throne, showing Han and Leia now bound in what appeared to be an interrogation chamber.

"She and her pitiful Rebellion have been thorns in my side for too long now," Palpatine sneered, as he pointed one bony finger at the wavering image and shot arrows of pain into Leia through the Force. As the others watched the diminutive princess suddenly scream in anguish, Luke crumpled forward, catching himself with one hand while holding his side with the other. His actions even caught Palpatine momentarily off-guard.

"You have developed a strong bond with Organa," he stated slowly, testing his words by again inflicting Leia with unbridled torment, this time in her head. Luke clutched his own head for an instant, but just as quickly lowered his hands and gritted his teeth in determination. *Don't let him hurt her, Father,* he sent pleadingly to Vader, shielding his silent communication as best he could from the Emperor.

*I cannot interfere, my son,* was the only reply Luke received.

"No!" In desperation, Luke sent a Force shove to the Emperor's hand as he raised it once more to strike at his sister.

"You dare to match your pitiful strength against my power," Palpatine cackled as he held both Luke and Mara in vice-like Force grips while simultaneously sending bolts of agony to Leia.

"Father, please just save Leia," Luke cried, out loud this time.

"You should be more concerned with your own welfare, Jedi," Palpatine interjected before Vader could speak, "instead of—"

"Sister," Darth Vader finished, coming a step closer to Luke as realization swept through him. "The Princess is your twin sister. My daughter."

"How can you let him destroy your own family?" Mara addressed the Dark Lord as Luke struggled to withstand yet another attack, this one directed at both him and his twin. She bent to help him, but was immediately pushed back by a powerful Force shove from Palpatine.

"Father," Luke begged, his body racked with excruciating pain. "Help us ..."

Vader stared at the malevolent grimace on his master's face, as his son's pleas continued to fill the room.

"Father ... please." Luke was weakening under the merciless assault, as Palpatine had now turned his full attention to the young Jedi.

"Stop!" Vader took a step toward his emperor. "You will not kill my children!"

Palpatine paused in his torment of Luke, but didn't seem surprised by his servant's protest. "Then, Lord Vader, it is you who must die. Your powerful son will take his rightful place at my side, after all." The Emperor stopped Vader's approach with a bolt of Force lightening. "As you well know," he cackled, "there can be only two."

Vader staggered back slightly, quickly raising his lightsaber to fend off the bolt. "He will never join you!" he declared, as Palpatine increased the potency of the energy bolts.

"His rage at witnessing the murder of his only parent should be sufficient to cause him to turn." The Emperor turned his full attention to Vader, summoning more dark power than was conceivable. "The added deaths of his sister and his traitorous lover will be that much more incentive."

"No!" A new sense of determination filled Darth Vader. He had allowed Palpatine to control him for over half of his life; he would not allow the same fate for his son. Killing the ruthless despot wouldn't atone for all the atrocities he himself had committed, but it was all he had to offer.

Mara Jade watched in horror as the Dark Lord of the Sith battled her former master. She had risen once, intending to circle behind Palpatine and join in the assault, but without warning she was hurled against the far wall by an unseen force. His Excellency had no trouble with split concentration. Crawling back to Luke's side, she could feel both his lingering weakness and his relief that the assault on Leia had ended. But overriding those emotions was a deep feeling of anxiety for his father. Expecting him to forego common sense and try to join in the battle also, she was surprised to see an intense look of concentration filling his face. She soon realized what he was doing, and reaching out to clutch his hand, didn't hesitate to join him.

The entire throne room crackled as rivulets of Force-powered electricity arced their way across the ceiling and floor, flaring up violently as dark side and light side energies connected. With both Luke and Mara augmenting his own formidable power, Darth Vader was able to go on the offensive, his blue blade meeting and returning each incoming firebolt with unbelievable speed. His old lightsaber had been constructed as a weapon for a Jedi of the Light, and for the first time in many, many years, it felt like it belonged in his grasp.

"You will pay for this, Vader," the Emperor grated out as he swayed under the trenchancy of his servant's crushing assault. With his face contorted in anger and the effectiveness of his lightening bolts diminishing, Palpatine then sent chairs, tables, statuary, every inanimate object in the room flying at his opponent. But unlike Luke on Bespin, Vader was prepared. He sent the deluge back at his master with practiced ease.

"No, Palpatine," Vader growled, all pretext of homage to his master gone from his voice. "It is you who will regret underestimating the united power of the Skywalkers."

Mara pulled Luke behind a sturdy pillar as the Force whirlwind swept the room. Behind her, she could hear guards pounding ineffectively on the locked doors. Beside her, Luke's eyes were focused solely on his father, though he gripped Mara's hand tightly. She could feel the raw power pouring out of him, manifested outwardly only by the beads of sweat that trickled down his face. But it was what she could see on her former master's face that captured Mara's attention – a glint of fear in his yellow eyes. Palpatine was straining to fend off Vader's potent onslaught, even as the Dark Lord's echoing wheezing gave testimony to his own dwindling strength.

Finally, Vader lunged at his master just as Palpatine conjured up an enormous ball of fire. Even as the conflagration was destroying his breathing apparatus, Vader reached through the flames with his lightsaber, cutting down Palpatine in one clean stroke. Luke and Mara covered their faces as a violent dark side explosion filled the throne room, slamming into them with unbridled energy.

At last, the Emperor was no more.

As Darth Vader collapsed to the floor, he knew he would not survive much longer. Dimly he could hear his son's voice as Luke scrambled to his side, begging him to hang on.

Luke knelt by his father, cradling him in his arms. "Father, don't die. Hold on, we'll get you out of here," he cried, tears threatening to spill.

"It is ... too late ... for me, Luke."

"Please, Father ..."

"Help me, Luke ..." Vader rasped in a hoarse whisper, making a feeble attempt at raising one hand toward his face. "Help me ... take this mask ... off."

"But you'll die," Luke objected weakly, his voice cracking with despair.

"Nothing ... can stop that now ..., my son. Just once ..., I want to see you with ... my own eyes."

Slowly, carefully, Luke did as his father requested. Tears sprang to his eyes as he finally gazed upon the scarred, deathly white visage of Anakin Skywalker.

Luke could feel Mara's light, comforting touch on his shoulder. "Luke, I hear explosions," she whispered hesitantly. "I think the palace is under attack." Luke realized he hadn't even noticed as the distant sounds of an artillery bombardment pierced the eerie stillness of the shattered chamber.

"Go, my son. You both must ... escape." The dying patriarch's voice was growing weaker by the moment as he drank in the sight of his precious son.

Luke was shaking his head adamantly. "No, you're coming with us," he protested.

"You must,... Luke." Anakin paused, wracked by a violent cough. The boy was as stubborn as his mother. "You have ... a great destiny to fulfill, my son, ... to rebuild ... what I have destroyed. Now ... leave me."

"But I can't leave you here. I won't." Luke clasped his father's hand, begging him to understand. "I've got to save you."

"You already have, my son." Anakin took another strangled breath before continuing. There was so much he still wanted to say to his son, so much he needed to say. "Your mother ... named you well, Luke. You have brought ... the light ... to me, and dispelled ... the darkness. You were right about me. Tell your sister ... you were right. Tell her ... I am sorry." Feebly he raised his right hand, still clutching his old lightsaber. "This is yours ... " he trailed off. "Now, go, Luke."

"Father, no!" Luke cried out in anguish. "Don't leave me ..." he trailed off in a choking sob.

Luke clutched his father's body tightly, weeping quietly into the coarse folds of heavy black cloth. Her own eyes wet, Mara gently pulled him back as the sound of guards torching through the heavy doors drew closer. "Luke, we have to get out of here. We have to go get Leia and Han."

At this, Luke slowly straightened up and wiped his sleeve across his eyes.

"You did save him, Luke," Mara consoled him quietly. "There's nothing more you can do here, but your sister still needs you."

Luke nodded, carefully releasing his father's body and rising to stand just as stormtroopers burst into the throne room. As the troopers hesitated a second, taking in the destruction that lay before them, Mara spied Luke's own saber, lying among the pieces of black rubble that had once been the Emperor's throne. Snatching it up, she snapped the green blade on and heard Luke do the same with his father's weapon. Together, they easily defeated the disorganized stormtroopers.

Luke started for the doors, but Mara called him back. "Wait! The Emperor's private lift will be faster!" She hurried to an isolated corner of the throne room, pushing debris out of her way. Luke followed, shaking himself out of his daze. Mara was right; he needed to pull himself together and concentrate on rescuing Leia and Han now. Pausing near the large transparisteel window, he was startled to see Rebel snub fighters making strafing runs across the cityscape.

"Stang!" Mara cursed loudly as she punched at the controls. "I'm locked out!"

A nearby explosion rocked the chamber, and Luke recognized it as a proton torpedo detonating. He grabbed Mara's hand and dragged her toward the open doorway. "Then we go out the way we came," he insisted. They reached the main bank of turbolifts, but the indicator lights showed them all in use, starting and stopping at nearly every floor.

"This way!" Mara headed toward the stairwell. "There's another set of lifts ten levels down." As they scurried down the steps, they were soon joined by others fleeing the bombardment. No one took the time to even notice the shabbily dressed pair of refugees with unlit lightsabers clutched in their hands.

The entire group spilled out of the stairway door when they reached their common destination, and were immediately confronted with a scene of mass chaos. Throngs of people hammered at the turbolift doors in desperation. Palace guards were being overwhelmed by the crowd's panic, their orders for everyone to remain calm lost among the deafening cries. Elegantly dressed politicians pushed and shoved their way next to plainly clad servants.

"The Emperor will save us!" one man shouted above the din, just as the walls and floor shook from another explosion.

"The Emperor has already abandoned us," someone else retorted, and no one disputed his claim. A dozen people tried to force their way onto a lift that was already jammed full, cursing and wailing when they were pushed away.

"Back to the stairs!" Mara called to Luke, as they were caught up in the scores of frightened people taking the same path. They soon found it necessary to grip hands to avoid being separated in the chaotic mob. Alarms began blaring all around them, echoing loudly in the stairway shaft.

*Could we use the secret passages?* Luke asked silently. He was relieved to feel his strength returning as adrenaline pumped through his body.

*If we can make it out of here to get to an entrance,* Mara sent back, pushing her way past a corpulent dignitary. She and Luke squeezed through the panicked crowd to reach the nearest exit, spilling out with several others onto the sixty-third floor. They were nearly swept up with a mob of assorted beings all fleeing in one direction along the wide hallway.

"Where are they all going?" Luke asked, stepping back as a stormtrooper passed him without so much as a glance his way. The entire scene reminded him of the poor souls fleeing Xizor's palace before Lando's thermal detonator brought the building down.

"There's a landing platform on this level," Mara returned, already pulling him against the flow toward the nearest passage entrance. "They'll be over-running anything that flies."

"Mara?"

The frightened feminine voice behind her caused Mara to whirl around in consternation. A group of four young women huddled against the wall, their shimmering costumes crushed in disarray.

"Mara!" another of the women repeated, relief evident in her voice. "We thought that was you," she said, as her gaze took in Mara's disheveled appearance and darkened locks.

"What's happening?!" wailed a blonde girl who appeared younger than the others. "What should we do?"

"The palace is under attack," Mara hastily explained the obvious. She shot a glance at the throng that still pushed past them. "You need to get to the lower levels, then away from the palace."

"But the Emperor ..." one of them protested. "Surely he ..."

"The Emperor's dead," Mara bit out. She looked aside at Luke, who was listening to the conversation in wide-eyed wonder. "Come with us," she said suddenly, starting back along her escape route.

Putting their faith in Mara's leadership, the four women followed quickly, being no strangers to obeying orders without question. Mara ducked into a nearby office, now deserted by its occupants. She led the little group into an adjoining storage area, and began shoving empty cartons aside to reach her goal.

*Who ...?* Luke began, eyeing their new companions.

*Dancers,* Mara replied quickly as she felt for the hidden release mechanism.

Luke glanced over his shoulder once more. *You mean there really are court dancers?*

Mara paused and gave him an incredulous look. *Of course! I told you that was my cover at court.* Shaking her head, she resumed her task, and soon a meter-square panel in the wall slid aside.

"All right, listen up," Mara announced to her new charges. "We're going to get out through here. It's going to be pitch-black, so everyone will have to stay close together."

"What is this place?" one of the girls questioned from the middle of the group, her curiosity overcoming her terror as she peered over a companion's shoulder into the inky darkness of the passageway.

"The Emperor's secret escape route," Mara responded. "And don't even ask how I know about this," she added as one of them started to speak up. "It's better that you don't know."

"Is he coming with us?" the blonde asked, sizing Luke up with interest. Mara had a reputation as a loner; it was unusual to find her with a handsome, albeit poorly dressed, young man.

"Yes," Mara shot back quickly. "Now, ..."

"Is he yours?" the same girl persisted. "Or is he up for grabs?"

Mara rolled her eyes in exasperation, then caught the embarrassed look on Luke's face. "He's mine." Sith, that didn't come out right. "I mean, he's my assignment." She grabbed Luke's arm, pulling him toward the opening. "We don't have time for this," she growled under her breath.

"Now join hands, and follow us," Mara instructed sternly, causing the quartet to lapse into silence. Behind her she sensed Luke taking the hand of the front-most girl, and without hesitation the group began their flight through the dark, dusty corridor, Mara expertly leading the way.

Wish I had a glow rod, Mara thought, as she used the Force to anticipate upcoming twists and turns.

*You do,* Luke sent back, hearing her nonetheless. *Hanging from your belt. Built it myself.*

*You could have spoken up sooner,* she grumbled back, irritated at herself for not thinking of the lightsaber already.

*You told me days ago that you were in charge of our whole escape,* he replied as he heard her switching on his saber, her outline now bathed in soft green light. *I figured that meant until we got off-planet.*

*One of these days, farmboy ...* Mara trailed off, seething at his impertinence.

Luke smiled, allowing himself a moment of contentment. Can't wait, Mara. Can't wait.

With their barely contained panic supplementing their natural athleticism, the dancers had little trouble keeping up with their two guides. Several times the group paused to brace themselves when explosions shook the structure. Before they knew it, Mara called a halt to their trek, leading them out into a nearly deserted hallway.

"Go out that way," she instructed the girls, pointing toward a nearby archway. "It will take you to a walkway that should be a safe passage from the palace."

"Aren't you coming?" one of the girls asked, pausing behind the others.

Mara shook her head. "We still have unfinished business here."

The girl glanced at Mara and her mysterious companion, then turned and fled with the others. As Luke and Mara reentered the passageway, Mara reflected on what had just transpired. Two weeks ago, she would have never stopped to help anyone else, especially someone as lowly as a dancer. Blast, this guy was rubbing off on her, she thought, as Luke's footsteps echoed behind her. He was going to turn her into some kind of weak-minded almsgiver yet.

The pair soon reached the detention levels. Unlike the upper floors of the palace, the stormtroopers here remained at their posts, and the outside bombardment could only be faintly heard.

Luke easily zeroed in on his sister's presence, and they quickly located Han and Leia in a chamber near their old cell. He and Mara dispatched the surrounding guards with no trouble, moving expertly in tandem with each other.

"You guys been practicing those moves together?" Han quipped, impressed in spite of himself at the skill Luke and Mara had just displayed. He flexed his stiff limbs as Mara undid his shackles.

Sensing Luke's somber mood, Mara answered for them both. "No, Solo." She glanced across at Luke, who had already released his sister and was now nodding at Leia's assurances that she was all right. "Guess it just comes natural to us."

"He's gone, Leia," Luke was choking out to his twin. "He killed the Emperor, but I couldn't save him. Father died for us."

"Oh, Luke." Leia hugged her brother close to her.

"He was a good man inside, Leia. He told me to tell you ..." Luke paused, grief filling him once more. He looked up, catching Mara's upraised eyebrows and 'you can tell her later' expression. The floor beneath them shook as a torpedo found its target close to them.

"Let's get the hell out of here," Han spoke up, taking charge of the situation. "They've started the attack early!"

"Speaking of which," Mara began, grinning to herself when she spotted her wrist blaster in a pile of confiscated weapons. "What in blazes is going on out there?"

"The Alliance is striking at Coruscant," Leia explained hurriedly. "We have to escape before the whole palace comes down."

"No kidding," Mara retorted smartly.

They made their way out of the chamber, Han and Leia now armed not only with their own blasters, but with blaster rifles seized from stormtroopers that no longer needed them. As they progressed down the corridor, Mara suddenly ducked into their former holding cell.

"Hey, where are you going?" Han shouted. "We don't have time for sightseeing detours!"

She emerged moments later, looping her and Luke's pack of clothes across her back. "I wanted a souvenir," she said with a snort, as she brushed past Han to take the lead. "C'mon, I know a shortcut."

"Don't suppose you have a way of raising that ship of yours," Mara shot to Han as they raced onward, barely blinking as she deflected a blaster bolt from an oncoming stormtrooper. She glanced back as Luke deflected a second shot directly back at the hapless trooper. I'll have to have him teach me that, she thought as they turned into a side passage.

"Not anymore," Han sent back, pausing behind her to catch his breath. "I couldn't find my comlink."

"I can get us to one of the lower landing platforms," Mara reasoned out loud. "Maybe there will still be a shuttle left we can appropriate."

Many floors, and many dead guards later, they stepped out onto a deserted platform. "Sith," Mara swore. "The cowards have even taken the Emperor's shuttle." Indeed, not only civilians but Imperial officers and stormtroopers were fleeing the palace's chaos, lost without the strong-armed guidance of Palpatine and his dark lord.

They made to reenter the building when Luke suddenly spoke up. "Wait!" He squinted into the smoke-filled battle zone above their heads. "I feel ... Look!" He pointed upward as a familiar shape swooped into view. Whoops of joy erupted from both Han and Leia, while Mara looked on apprehensively.

"It's the Falcon!" Han exclaimed, waving his hands wildly.

"They probably can't even see us," Mara groused. "They won't know we're here." She glanced to the side to see Luke standing still, eyes closed in concentration. He soon looked up, a smile lighting up his haggard features.

"They do now," he pronounced happily, the wind blowing his hair as Han's beloved freighter approached the landing pad.

"Ahh, the famous Millenium Falcon," Mara said, smirking. "Be still my heart."

Han started to retort when Leia grabbed his arm, pulling him toward the lowering ramp.

"How'd you find us?" Han shouted as he entered the cockpit, taking the pilot's seat that Lando was just relinquishing.

"We saw the party was starting without us," Lando explained as he settled into the rear navigator's chair, "and didn't want to miss out on the fun."

"But how'd you know where we were?" Han was still puzzled, as he readied the controls for lift-off.

[I felt something in my head,] Chewie howled, [guiding me to your location.]

So that's what Luke was doing, Han thought. "Guess Jedi are good for something after all," he admitted, entering the fray of the battle. He felt one hundred percent better now that he was once more at the helm of his faithful ship. Luke and Leia checked in from the top and bottom turret guns, already blasting at the approaching TIE's.

"Where do you want me?" came a voice from the rear of the cockpit. Lando turned to see a young woman bracing herself in the doorway. A dirty, disheveled, and most attractive young woman.

"Strap yourself in the lounge, and stay out of the way," Han yelled, not even turning around. With a disgusted growl, the woman disappeared.

"Who was that?" Lando questioned in awe.

"Just some stray Luke picked up," Han retorted, concentrating on his flying. "She's not your type," he added, not able to pass up the chance to rib Lando.

"Oh, I don't know ..." the former Baron Administrator drawled, straining his neck for another glimpse. "She's female."

 _______________________________________________________________________________

The battle over Imperial City raged on for hours, with the Rebel ships gradually outgunning the scattering Imperials. Soon, Han received orders to meet with Ackbar's flagship at the pre-arranged rendezvous point, leaving the squadrons of X-wings and Y-wings to take care of the mopping-up action.

As the Falcon made the jump to hyperspace, Han and Lando unbuckled and moved to the central lounge just as Leia and Luke were entering from opposite directions.

"We made it!" Leia exclaimed gleefully, hugging Luke quickly before crossing to Han's side.

"We should reach Bilbringi by midday tomorrow," Han informed the others, wrapping his arm around Leia's slim shoulders.

Lando was paying no attention, however. "Isn't anyone going to introduce me?" he lamented, eyeing the green-eyed brunette now leaning casually against a bulkhead.

Luke cleared his throat. "Lando, this is Mara Jade, a ..."

But Lando was barely listening as he quickly crossed the lounge to take the lady's hand. "I am General Lando Calrissian, my dear. Charmed to make your acquaintance."

Everyone in the room rolled their eyes, including Mara as she pulled her hand back before Lando could kiss it.

"I am pleased to meet you as well," Threepio piped up. "I am See-Threepio, Human Cyborg Relations ..."

But Mara's eyes were fixed on the doorway to the cockpit, now filled by an enormous shaggy Wookiee who was roaring into the room.

"Chewie says hello, too," Han translated. "Well, we've all had a busy day. Maybe we need to get some rest." He turned to the Jedi standing near him. "Luke, I guess your bunk is gonna look pretty good. Miss Jade, I'm afraid we don't have a spare cabin, but you're welcome to crash here in the lounge."

Luke looked around the room – Han, Chewie, Lando, Leia. "Wait a minute, the Falcon only has four cabins. How can mine be empty?"

The others exchanged nervous glances. Finally Leia spoke up quietly. "I'm staying in Han's cabin, Luke."

Luke held her gaze a few moments, but without the accusatory stare that Leia had feared. "Oh. I see." He gave Leia a small smile, then turned to his companion.

"Mara, you can sleep in my bunk." At the sound of snickers, he hurriedly added, "I mean, I'll stay out here."

"Sure, kid, whatever," Han said with a laugh. "I'll take the first watch. Chewie, you wanna relieve me in three hours?"

Chewbacca roared his agreement.

"Okay, then, I'll see the rest of you in the morning." With a wink to Leia, Han turned and strode into the cockpit.

Lando and Chewie bade their goodnights and left the lounge. Leia laid a hand lightly on Luke's arm and kissed his cheek. "Thank you for understanding," she whispered. "It's so good to have you back."

"It's good to be back," Luke returned, smiling at Leia as she left also. Looking at Mara, he tilted his head down the corridor. "I'll show you which cabin you can use."

"Sure," she replied, following him. They reached a tiny cabin near the end of the corridor.

"Here we are," Luke announced, waving her into the small cubicle first.

Mara glanced around the cabin in silence.

"Do you need anything?" Luke asked. Mara looked down at her ragged clothes.

"Umm. I don't suppose you have something I could sleep in?"

"Uh, let me see." Luke pulled open a compartment built into the wall. Reaching in, he pulled out a well-worn knit shirt. "Will this do? If not, I'm sure Leia would have something you could borrow."

"No, no. This is fine," she assured him, taking the garment.

Luke stood there, rubbing the back of his neck and trying to avoid her emerald gaze. "I ... guess ... I'll see you in the morning then," he murmured. As he began to leave, he heard a small voice behind him.

"They don't trust me."

Luke turned back around and met her level gaze. "They don't know you," he said quietly.

"Humph. And when they do know me," Mara retorted, "you actually think, then they'll trust me? You're more naïve than I imagined, Skywalker."

Luke reached out, took her hand, and led her over to the bunk. He perched himself on the edge of the mattress, and waited until she did the same.

"Mara, I know this won't be easy for us."

"What do you mean, 'us'? I'm the one they'll toss in a prison cell and then throw away the key."

"I won't let that happen."

"What makes you think you could prevent it? And why would you try? I'm the enemy." She fixed him with a challenging stare.

Luke took both her hands in his, holding them tightly.

"Look, we escaped the palace, and survived underground, because we stuck together. You helped me." He gazed into her eyes. "I'm not about to abandon you now."

"Skywalker, be reasonable. You're a commander in the Alliance. You're a Jedi Knight. You can't let yourself be dragged down by someone like me."

"Things will be all right, you'll see," Luke continued. "They'll be so much going on when we get back to Imperial City, no one will even notice you."

"You make a girl feel so special, Skywalker," she said, a hint of teasing in her dry tone.

"That's not what I meant," he fumbled.

She waved off his feeble attempt to explain himself. "Don't worry, I can blend in with the best of them." Mara pulled away from him, moving to pace across the room. "I no longer have anything tying me down to Imperial Center," she continued, musing aloud. "Maybe I'll hop a transport, and see the galaxy from a new perspective."

"Oh," Luke muttered, more than a little dejected at the thought of her leaving so soon. He rose also, picking out some clean clothes for himself. "Guess I'll let you get some sleep. You're welcome to use anything you find in here."

"Thanks," she murmured.

"Goodnight, Mara."

"Goodnight, ..."

Luke. Call me Luke. Please, call me Luke. He held his breath waiting for her to finish.

"... Skywalker."

Thanks to his Jedi control, not a muscle twitched, except for the tightening of his heart.

You could kiss me goodnight, Mara thought hopefully, gazing at his impassive face. Just a peck on the cheek. Just a hug ...

Luke turned and walked out the door.

"What you doin' back out here so soon, pal?" Han commented as Chewie entered the cockpit.

[Forgot I wanted to realign the sensors,] the Wookiee responded. [Lando's been fiddling with them again.]

"Hummph," Han muttered, once more thanking the gods he was back in charge of his beloved ship.

[The cub is quite fond of his new friend,] Chewie continued, bringing up the subject of their newest passenger.

"Yeah, well, he's too trusting," Han muttered, as he idly fine-tuned the deflector shields. "What do we know about her, anyway? Practically nothing."

[Perhaps Luke knows more than he's letting on.]

"He is getting pretty good at keeping secrets from the rest of us, ain't he?" Han said, scowling. "Too good. I have this gut feeling he's hiding something again."

At Chewie's low questioning growl, Han added, "Yeah, a bad feeling."

[Maybe he brought her along because he finds her attractive.]

"When has Luke ever been swayed by a pretty face?"

[You wouldn't be here now, practically engaged, if he hadn't been inclined to rescue a certain pretty face.]

"Yeah, yeah, I know."

Luke came out of his cabin and settled in on the acceleration couch in the lounge. As exhausted as he was, though, sleep was determined to evade him. So much had happened in the last few weeks, he had trouble believing it was all real. He had found his father, and lost his father. The galaxy had lost a tyrant, but Luke had no doubt others would vie to take his place.

He had found a new friend, Luke continued reflecting, but could very well soon lose her, too. He had found a sister, while she had found a soulmate in his best friend. Now that was an alliance he had seen coming ages ago. And apparently, his sister was ahead of him in the 'being intimate with someone' department. Wearily, Luke turned on his side. Stang, he could be an uncle before he even had a chance to ... No, Mara was right. He'd had his chance, and blew it. He had his doubts that she'd ever give him another.

Luke cut short his self-imposed feelings of regret when Han wandered through the lounge, supposedly on his way to get some caf from the galley.

"Still awake?"

"Uhm-mmm," Luke murmured groggily.

"Thought maybe you'd stay with your lady friend tonight," Han drawled, trying to fish for information on just what kind of involvement Luke had with this 'Jade.' "None of us would mind."

Luke was silent a moment, then his voice drifted through the dark shadows of the lounge. "No, that ... wouldn't be proper."

Wouldn't be 'proper?' thought Han. He's starting to sound like Goldenrod.

"Uh," Han continued, never one to be deterred. "Is she going to be staying with us?"

"I don't know."

Han waited as he heard Luke shift around on the creaky leather couch.

"Maybe not," Luke finally went on, since Han was obviously not going to leave without more of an answer. "She said something about taking a transport to tour the galaxy."

"Yeah, I guess dancers don't get out to see much."

Luke winced inwardly, but kept silent this time. He made a pretense of yawning loudly.

"Hmmm. Well, guess you're pretty tired," Han went on, finally deciding to let up on the kid. "You better get some rest."

"Yeah, goodnight, Han."

"'night, kid."

A couple hours later, Han wearily slipped into the narrow bunk with Leia. "I should have gotten me a bed warmer ages ago," he teased as she snuggled up close to him.

"Nerf herder," she muttered sleepily. "I'm so glad Luke is back safe with us."

"Yeah. But since when do Jedi Knights act like protocol droids?"

"What?"

"I was kidding him that he ought to bunk with his lady friend, but he told me it 'wouldn't be proper.'"

"He said that?"

"Word for word. Best Threepio imitation I've heard in awhile."

Leia was silent a moment. "Do you think ...?" she began.

"Think what?" Han yawned.

"Maybe Luke doesn't consider our sharing this cabin as 'proper,' either. I thought I caught a sense of understanding from him, but perhaps I misread him."

"Who knows what goes through his mind?" Han kissed Leia lightly. "Let's get some sleep. You can quiz him in the morning."

The next morning, Leia was fixing herself a cup of caf in the galley when Mara Jade startled her. The woman hadn't made a sound.

"Would you like some?" Leia offered, recovering her poise. The woman's emerald-eyed stare slightly unnerved her.

"Yes, please." So the aloof princess was Skywalker's twin sister.

"Did you sleep well?" Leia asked politely.

"I eventually fell asleep." Mara accepted the steaming caf from Leia's outstretched hand. "It felt strange, not having Luke curled up next to me." There, let her chew on that for awhile.

It was a good thing Leia hadn't picked up her own cup yet. No doubt it would have hit the floor, as her lower jaw did.

"The shower did help relax me," Mara went on, "though it can't compare to the baths he and I shared. Your brother has quite the physique under all those boring black clothes, you know."

"I ..., I ..." Leia stuttered, "didn't know." Rarely did anyone leave Leia Organa speechless. She raised one hand to her mouth in consternation when she realized Luke was standing in the doorway.

"What in blazes are you telling her?" he demanded of Jade, his eyes burning with fury.

"Nothing that isn't true." Mara met his stare coolly. "Or do you want them to believe you're always the sanctimonious Jedi, up on some pedestal above the rest of us?"

Luke grabbed her arm roughly. "You don't need to broadcast our personal affairs!"

Leia sidled over to Han, who had entered moments before. "Whoa!" he whispered to her. "Am I missing a show in here?"

"It was only one affair, Jedi," Mara said, laughing haughtily. "And I wouldn't count on it being repeated."

"I wouldn't either," he bit out, dragging her out of the galley by the arm. Luke pulled her down the corridor to his cabin, passing a wide-eyed Lando on the way.

Lando entered the galley and proceeded to the caf dispenser. "What was that all about?" he quizzed Han and Leia, gesturing behind him.

"Lover's spat, I'd say." Han grinned, then turned to Leia. "I didn't know the kid had it in him."

Luke smacked the door control shut, then turned to face his companion. "Have you lost your senses?!" he seethed. "Why would you say things like that to my sister?"

"Embarrassed to have anybody know what you've done with an Imperial concubine?" she taunted.

"We haven't DONE anything!" he shouted.

"Besides, I figured I was doing you a favor." Mara settled herself on the edge of the bunk.

Luke ran a hand through his tousled hair, making him look that much more appealing, in Mara's opinion. An opinion she kept buried beneath a cool exterior.

"And just where in your deluded brain would you come up with that idea?"

"I saw the pleading look your sister was giving you last night, when she admitted to shacking up with Solo. She was scared to death you wouldn't approve." Mara shrugged casually. "I was just trying to make her feel better."

"That's ridiculous." Luke paced back and forth. "She knows I wouldn't judge her."

"Does she?" Mara arched an eyebrow.

"She's my sister. I think I know her better than you do."

"You didn't even know she was your sister until, what, a month ago?" Mara stood and faced Luke. "Listen, Skywalker, women worry about what people think of them, especially people they care for."

"And do you worry what I think of you?"

Mara swallowed hard, then turned aside quickly. "This isn't about us."

"No, I guess there is no 'us,' is there?" Luke gave her a disappointed stare, then looked down at his feet in resignation.

"I'm sorry, Skywalker," Mara said quietly. "I'll apologize to her, and tell her the truth."

Luke kept his head bent down, but shifted his azure gaze up to meet hers. Suddenly a little smile wormed its way onto his face. "Nah, let them think what they want. It might be kind of a nice change, to have a playboy reputation for awhile."

Mara's expression turned into a contented smirk as she purred seductively, "Whatever pleasures you, Jedi."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

A week later, Commander Luke Skywalker was back on Coruscant, gazing up at what was left of the once-magnificent Imperial Palace, Mara Jade standing at his side. The full upper third of the building was virtually gone, destroyed by the barrage of proton torpedoes. What remained of the former site of the Emperor's domination displayed little resemblance to its past elegance.

"My suite was on the ninety-fifth floor," Mara commented with strained complacence. "It's completely gone now. What few possessions I owned were in there ... Kaythree ... all gone."

Luke remained silent, not wishing to intrude on her reminiscing.

Mara cocked an eyebrow toward him. "Your suite, on the other hand, should still be there. It was twenty levels below mine. We should go take a look."

Luke shrugged self-consciously. "Oh, I don't know. It's not really necessary."

"You don't always have to do only what is necessary, Skywalker." She nodded with her head toward the walkway that led to the entrance, her face devoid of any smug satisfaction as she wondered if this was such a good idea or not.

The pair entered the lobby and approached the makeshift guard station.

"Commander Skywalker, sir," the harried lieutenant said, saluting.

"Good morning, Lieutenant." Luke smiled warmly. "We'd like to visit some of the upper levels."

"You would have access, of course, sir, but I'm afraid your companion would not. Only officers and approved repair crews are allowed above this level."

"I'll take responsibility," Luke assured the officer. When the latter still hesitated, he added in an even controlled voice. "She is approved to enter."

"Uh, yes," the lieutenant replied slowly. "She's approved to enter." The man blinked, then continued. "The structure is only stable enough to walk through up to the seventy-eighth floor, sir."

"That will be far enough. Thank you." Luke smiled again as he and Mara started to walk away.

"Oh, and Commander," the lieutenant called after them, "the turbolifts aren't operating."

"I'm sure we can find the stairs," Luke sent back.

"Abusing your power, Jedi?" Mara said with a smirk.

"You know me better than that." Luke grinned as they entered the stairwell. "I figured these commander's stripes should be good for something."

"Uh-huh. Sure, whatever you say." Mara slid one hand along the dusty railing as they ascended, old memories beginning to assault her. No, maybe this wasn't the best idea she'd ever had.

Even they were beginning to tire when Luke and Mara finally reached the seventy-fifth floor. Mara set off toward the site of Luke's incarceration, while he trailed slowly behind. "Well, c'mon," she groused as he looked up and down the corridor.

"I've only actually entered and exited once, you know," he explained as he attempted to get his bearings. "And only via the turbolift."

"Turbolift shaft upon exiting," she corrected wryly. "Don't worry, I know the way."

They soon reached the door, now jammed open about ten centimeters. The controls proved useless, they quickly realized.

"Okay, so we go for the brute strength method." Luke frowned as he wrapped his hands around the edge of the heavy door and braced one foot against the jamb. A few minutes later the stubborn door slid aside enough to allow them entrance.

"Guess you could have just sliced it open with your lightsaber," Mara suggested too late.

"No need to ruin a perfectly good door," Luke responded, before stopping to survey the destruction that lay before them.

"Don't think it would have mattered much," Mara murmured. Furniture lay toppled, music and reader disks were scattered where they'd fallen, expensive art pieces were now only broken pieces of porcelain. A heavy coating of dust from the ceiling covered everything, disturbed only by the strong winds that whipped through the uneven hole in the transparisteel window.

Luke stepped into the room carefully, almost reverently. Mara paused, glancing briefly at the desolation, then moved on through the suite. As she wandered into the bedroom, Luke bent and retrieved a particular music disk from the pile on the floor, slipping it into his pocket as memories of a night of dancing lessons surfaced in his mind. When he joined Mara in the next room, he found her just standing, mutely staring at the shards of jagged transparisteel that covered the now-torn silk bedcoverings. He didn't disturb her, but instead turned hesitantly toward the refresher door.

When Mara eventually took notice of Luke's passing behind her, she also forced leaden steps into the scene of their former sanctuary. He was leaning against a wall, lips compressed tightly. She followed his gaze to the once-elegant marble tub, and the large crack that now punctuated its side and bottom. They stood in silence together a few moments, until Mara finally took a deep breath and spoke.

"Guess there's some profound symbolic meaning here," she wisecracked.

Luke chuckled in a low voice. "Maybe only that we weren't meant for the life of marble whirlpools and silken furnishings." He pushed away from the wall and guided her back out to the common room. They wandered over to the window and gazed out at the still majestic view of the vast city.

"Have you come to a decision about our offer yet?" Luke ventured.

"Supply Distribution Coordinator for Rogue Squadron? I don't know, Skywalker." Mara watched as the Central Gathering Hall's giant beam swept across the sky, marking the hour, oblivious to the drastic change in government. "I suppose it would be better than being shipped to Hesperidium with the rest of Palpatine's dancers and concubines."

"And you could spend more time with me," Luke added, a thread of relief weaving its way through him.

"Are you trying to talk me out of it now?" She jabbed him playfully, eliciting a grin from Luke before he turned back to observing the distant lights, falling into silence once more.

"So what else is on your mind?" She waited while he formulated a reply. Rarely anymore could they not read each other's emotions like an uncoded datacard.

Luke bit his bottom lip, then spoke quietly, still looking out the cracked window. "I have a present for you, a thank-you gift for helping me out of this place."

She waited as he finally turned toward her, reaching one hand into his jacket and pulling out a lightsaber. Her eyes grew wide as she recognized the old Jedi weapon.

"But that was your father's," she protested. "He told you to keep it. You can't give it away."

"He also told us to take care of each other," Luke reminded her. "Knowing us, I figure the best way, perhaps the only way, of doing that is by making sure you have a reliable weapon so you can take care of both me and yourself."

She frowned at his roundabout logic, so typical of the man she'd come to know and admire.

"Besides," Luke continued, "I've got my own saber." He fingered the instrument hanging from his belt, which he'd crafted himself in Ben's old home. "This one would just end up lying on some shelf, gathering dust." He shot her a pleading look. "You could consider it a loan until you build your own."

She slowly took the weapon as he held it out to her. "Who says I'm going to ever build one?" she said with a snort. "I'm not going to become one of your Jedi."

"I don't see anyone else lining up for the privilege," he retorted, a small smile playing about his lips as she stroked the smooth cylinder. "No strings attached. Just hold on to it for me. Who knows, I may need you to rescue me again someday."

Mara clutched the lightsaber tightly, then clipped it to her own belt. "I should be the one giving you a present. You saved me in a way that I could never reciprocate."

"We don't need to keep score," Luke murmured, hesitantly wrapping one arm around her shoulders and breathing a sigh of relief when she didn't shrug him off. "That's what friends are for."

Mara nodded in silent reply, and leaned in a little closer to him, her once-again red-gold hair spilling over his shoulder.

Luke shut his eyes, savoring this moment. His relationship with Mara was like a pendulum, going from worlds apart to so near he could taste her kisses and feel her in his arms, then swinging back out so distant that they could barely see each other.

They may not be ready for a romantic alliance just yet, but someday ... someday he was going to grab her when she was at her closest, hold her tight, and never let her swing out away from him again.

To be continued in Book II...Pledge